More than 60 persons have been dug out by Indonesian rescue officials, from the collapse of an illegal gold mine on the island of Sulawesi that killed at least three.
Rescuers say they could hear the voices of some of those trapped in makeshift mining shafts in a muddy hillside and believes many are still alive.
Disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said dozens of people were mining for gold when beams and support boards broke suddenly.
The Indonesian government has banned such small-scale gold mining, although regional authorities often turn a blind eye to the practice in more remote areas. With little regulation, such mines are prone to accidents.
Resource-rich Indonesia has a patchy record on mining safety, particularly small-scale unlicensed mines. At least five people were killed in the same part of Sulawesi last year after an illegal mine collapsed during heavy rain.
