Jakarta - (dpa) - The Indonesian police said today, Friday, that at least 12 women have died as a result of the collapse of the ventilation shaft of a gold star where they were working in the province of North Sumatra, Indonesia.

Local police chief Raza Akbar said the women were working at an unlicensed mine in Mandiling Natal province on Thursday when they were buried by a mudslide.

He added that local people dug through the mud to find the bodies of the victims.

Notably, fatal accidents are common at illegal mining sites in Indonesia.