By Thiam Nadiaga

OUGADOUGOU, (Reuters) – Rescue workers found no survivors inside a rescue chamber in a flooded Zinc mine in Burkina Faso. This government statement on Tuesday was a blow to hopes that the eight miners still alive could be found after a month.

Trevali Mining Corp, a Canadian company, purchased Perkoa, a Perkoa mining site, which is located 120km west of Ouagadougou. It was submerged by torrential rains that fell during the country’s dry seasons.

There was hope after a month of search and rescue that some of the missing men may have found the rescue chamber. This rescue chamber is approximately 570 metres beneath the ground.

“The rescue teams opened the refuge room, unfortunately it’s empty,” said the information service of the government in a tweet posted to social media.

According to the statement, “Everything indicates that miners could not reach refuge chamber at flood time and continues searches.”

Trevali, in its own statement released just after the government’s, stated that the refuge room had been discovered intact, with no one inside.

As they waited for the news, distraught relatives of the men missing have been arriving at the Sanguie site every day to seek solace.

Investigations into the cause of the accident have been launched by the government and the company.

Perkoa Mine is an open-pit mine with underground shafts below. Most workers were evacuated by the flash flood, with eight missing.

Sixteen of the men missing are Burkina Faso Nationals. One is from Tanzania, and one comes from Zambia.

Sofia Christensen (Writing) and Estelle Sharbon (Editing: James Macharia Chege