Dozens of people have been buried by a landslide at an unlicensed goldmine in Indonesia’s North Sulawesi province, the national disaster agency has said, as emergency personnel used their bare hands and farm tools to reach victims calling for help from beneath the rubble.

The agency said two people were dead and 14 were injured, with at least 60 buried.

Local disaster official Abdul Muin Paputungan said: “Unstable soil conditions make us extra careful lifting rocks because it can lead to new landslides. We still hear voices crying for help from people beneath the rubble.”

Makeshift wooden structures in the mine in Bolaang Mongondow district collapsed on Tuesday evening due to unstable soil and the large number of mining holes, burying people in the mine pit.

Evakuasi puluhan orang penambang emas tanpa ijin yang tertimbun longsor terus dilakukan oleh tim SAR gabungan di areal PETI Desa Bakan Kec Lolayan Kab Bolaang Mongondow Sulut. Data sementara: 1 orang tewas, 13 orang luka, dan puluhan orang masih tertimbun. pic.twitter.com/lH3aZFBBty — Sutopo Purwo Nugroho (@Sutopo_PN) February 26, 2019

Dangerous informal mining operations are commonplace in Indonesia.

Police, search and rescue agency workers, military and Indonesian Red Cross personnel were all taking part in the rescue effort but the remoteness of the location was complicating the operation.

Paputungan said the mine and a village connected to it were in a steep area that can be reached only by foot. Earth-moving equipment and ambulances cannot reach the location, he said.