PNG gold mine causes 30 deaths

Villagers in the vicinity of the Mount Victor gold mine in PNG's Eastern Highlands have fled, claiming cyanide leaking from the mine tailings dam and other facilities is getting into the local waterways and causing deaths among people and pigs. They say there have been 30 deaths since the 1994 mine closure and attribute all the deaths to cyanide.

More than 100 villagers had fled their homes, and a further 2000 have stopped harvesting food from their gardens and drinking water from the remote Saiyora and Omaura villages. Villagers say the tailings have not been properly neutralised.

People drinking from creeks develop large ulcers or start vomiting and die after about two days. Pigs digging in the mine tailings dam have died in large numbers. A spokesperson for Niugini Mining, Gavin Thomas, speaking from the United States, told the PNG Post-Courier that his company had followed all proper procedures in decommissioning the mine. Thomas said tests showed no sign of residual cyanide in the area and denied that deaths had been caused by cyanide from the old mine. Niugini Mining is a partner in the major Lihir gold mine in New Ireland.

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