In any event 36 individuals have been slaughtered after a copper and cobalt mine fallen in Lualaba region in south-east DR Congo, experts state.
The common senator Richard Muyej accused the mishap for what he called "surreptitious high quality diggers".
Informal mining is regular in the locale and individuals do it as a way to bring home the bacon.
Mines in southern DR Congo produce the greater part of the world's cobalt - a key segment in cell phone batteries.
Costs for it dramatically increased a year ago gratitude to expanded interest for electric vehicles, which likewise utilize the mineral in their batteries.
