At least 24 amateur gold prospectors have been killed in a mine collapse in south west Colombia.
About 18 people were injured and another 10 estimated to be missing after the accident near Suarez, about 350 kilometres (220 miles) from Bogota.
Local residents were mining for gold with few security measures in place.
Rescue efforts have been called off for the night and were hampered by the fact that there was no record of how many people had entered the mine.
Recent torrential rains had weakened the sides of the open cast mine, sparking a landslide of mud and rock on some 50 prospectors.
Cauca Provincial Governor, Juan Jose Chaux, said the search has been suspended as darkness and bad weather made the mine more unsafe.
A local policeman told The Associated Press that "there are still a lot of people to rescue, and we don’t know what conditions they’re in."
Television pictures showed rescuers with heavy machinery wading through mud in an eight metre (25 feet) deep by 50 metre (160 feet) wide pit.
Chaux said prospectors had entered the pit after rumours there were gold seams despite being warned it was unsafe by the Suarez mayor.
The site is owned by mining company Agromineros.
Gold deposits abound in the region but few mining companies venture to operate there because warring factions control much of the country’s rural parts.
Residents have taken the opportunity to set up illegal mining operations which respect no safety regulations.
I n February, a gas explosion at a coal mine in notrth eastern Colombia killed 32 miners
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