At least 160 people have died in Northern Nigeria, and this number is likely to increase as villagers continue to expose themselves to lead poisoning from illegal gold mining. The discovery of a gold deposit triggered a "gold rush" among impoverished farmers who dug up rocks by hand, unaware that the ore contained dangerously high concentrations of lead. Nigerian authorities have asked for assistance from various international agencies, including the World Health Organisation, to help contain the outbreak. Related articles by Zemanta Illegal gold mining leads to scores of deaths in northern Nigeria (cnn.com) Poison wipes out 163 in Zamfara (vanguardngr.com) Lead poisoning from mining kills 163 in Nigeria (reuters.com) Nigeria: 160 die from lead as villages seek gold (seattletimes.nwsource.com) Nigeria Lead-Poisoning Tests Widened (online.wsj.com)
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