Five people were killed and around fifteen others went missing after a waste heap collapsed at an abandoned jade mine in Myanmar, according to state media reports on Tuesday. The incident occurred following heavy rainfall that loosened piles of mining waste, burying people who were collecting leftover jade fragments.

The collapse took place in Kachin State, a region known as the world’s largest source of jadeite. Myanmar’s jade industry operates largely without regulation, and many mines are controlled by various armed groups involved in the country’s ongoing civil conflict. Poor local residents often scavenge discarded mining areas to find small jade pieces for survival.

State newspaper The Global New Light of Myanmar reported that search operations were underway to locate the missing individuals. The report added that continuous heavy rain in recent days had triggered the landslide, highlighting the dangerous conditions faced by informal workers in the lucrative but hazardous jade sector.