Third incident of illegal miners trapped in disused mines

There have now been three incidents this week where illegal miners hmanganese crusherave been trapped underground.

Two illegal miners remain trapped in a disused goldmine in Johannesburg after a rockfall on Thursday morning, emergency workers said.

The men, both Zimbabweans, were part of a group mining illegally for gold in a disused shaft at Durban Deep on the West Rand, Johannesburg, emergency services spokesman Robert Mulaudzi said.

The rockfall happened shortly after midnight. Six illegal miners, all Zimbabweans, managed to escape and raise the alarm. “We are consulting with experts on how to rescue the two men,” Mulaudzi said.

Meanwhile, eighteen illegal miners have been brought to the surface at a gold mine owned by Harmony Gold in Welkom in the Free State.

Police said rescue effort will continue as long as the underground situation in the gold mine is safe. Search and rescue efforts are still underway to find four ‘zama-zamas’ –industry slang for illegal miners.

In the Northern Cape, two bodies of illegal miners have been removed, one body has been seen but not retrieved, one miner has been rescued with minor injuries and 15 miners remain trapped underground at the disused Kleinzee diamond mine, which is owned by De Beers. The company is in the process of selling the mine toJSE listed miner Trans Hex.

Engineers have inspected the site where the shaft caved in to assess the best possible way to reach the rest of the miners. They have decided to dig a ditch alongside the caved in tunnel to try and reach them.

Police spokesperson Captain Cherelle Ehlers said the conditions at the rescue site were extremely difficult and dangerous.

De Beers said it has been educating people living nearby on the dangers of illegal mining via regional radio and in community discussions.

De Beers said the incident occurred in an area where it had stopped mining two years ago, adding that the miners had ignored warnings not to enter the disused shafts.

South Africa has the world’s deepest gold mines and is also a major producer of platinum and coal. Old or abandoned shafts are often worked by informal diggers, many of them migrants from Zimbabwe or Mozambique.

The miners who are fit enough have been charged with trespassing; those who have been rescued will also be charged.