The mining accident occurred after a landslide. The mine, located near the border with Cameroon, is one of many illegal mining sites in the region. Rescue efforts are underway in the Zamboye area, about 50 kilometers from the town of Baboua.
"At the moment it is difficult for us to calculate an exact death toll," said the official representative in Baboua, Laurent Ngon Baba, on Wednesday afternoon.
Injured miners were taken to hospitals in the city, while the search for survivors and the dead continued.
Safety and working conditions are completely substandard in the illegal mines in the republic. The accident is believed to have been triggered by the collapse of mining tunnels, which caused a landslide.
