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South Africa: more than 950 gold miners trapped underground South Africa: more than 950 trapped gold miners brought to surface
(about 9 hours later)
Sibanye-Stillwater mining company said miners stuck up to 1000m below ground after outage caused by a stormSibanye-Stillwater mining company said miners stuck up to 1000m below ground after outage caused by a storm
Agence France-Presse Agencies in Johannesburg
Thu 1 Feb 2018 22.42 GMT Fri 2 Feb 2018 07.47 GMT
First published on Thu 1 Feb 2018 22.42 GMT
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Hundreds of gold miners were stuck underground in South Africa on Thursday after a power cut, the mine’s owner said, though the workers were not reported to be in immediate danger. At least 900 gold miners who were trapped in a South African mine for more than 24 hours after a power outage were safely evacuated on Friday morning.
The Sibanye-Stillwater mining company said a massive power outage caused by a storm had prevented lifts from bringing the night shift to the surface at the Beatrix gold mine, near the city of Welkom. The Sibanye-Stillwater company, which manages the Beatrix mine in Free State province, said the miners will have medical tests and counselling and that it expects the mine to start operating again Monday.
“We have got 955 employees still underground, they are in a confined and safe area, it’s the shaft waiting area (and) there is ventilation, we are supplying them with water and food,” James Wellsted, spokesman for Sibanye-Stillwater, told AFP. Mine unions and others, however, are expressing concern that there was no functioning back-up plan for evacuation after a storm knocked out power Wednesday night and say the incident reflects continuing safety problems in South Africa’s mines.
“So everybody is fine at the moment. We are trying to restore power so we can start hoisting them to the surface,” he said, speaking on the phone from the mine. The mining company said a massive power outage caused by a storm had prevented lifts from bringing the night shift to the surface at the mine near the city of Welkom.
He said the depth where the miners were trapped was uncertain, but the mine has 23 levels, going down to about 1,000m (3,280ft) below ground. Company managers and unions say food and water was delivered to the trapped miners while they awaited the restoration of power, which enabled elevators to ferry them to the top.
One cable was restored during the day and 272 workers were rescued, but 955 remained trapped by early evening, the company said. James Wellsted, spokesman for Sibanye-Stillwater, said the mine has 23 levels, going down to about 1,000m (3,280ft) below ground.
They have been underground for 24 hours. One cable was restored on Thursday and 272 workers were rescued, but 955 remained trapped by early evening, the company said.
Wellsted said that engineers were struggling to get emergency generators to operate and re-start the lifts following the storm. The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) called on mineworkers to refuse to work in “dangerous conditions”.
“We are having some issues – probably related to the power surge linked to the storm – in getting the winders working, so we are busy working on that issue at the moment,” he added.
“Last night there was a severe storm in the Free State (province) that affected two different power cables... and cut off all electricity supply to the mine, so we were unable to bring the night shift up.”
Back-up power generators failed to kick in due to a software issue “and we are trying to solve that problem,” said Wellsted.
The Beatrix mine is in Free State province, 290kms (180 miles) southwest of Johannesburg.
AMCU, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, said that the workers stuck underground were facing major health and safety risks.
“AMCU views this incident as extreme due to the sheer number of workers involved,” it said in a statement.
“The incident raises serious concern regarding the lacking emergency contingency plans at the mine for alternative and back-up power generation.”
It said workers’ lives could be in danger, especially if they were on medication.
Another mining union the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) complained about mine safety and called on mineworkers to refuse to work in “dangerous conditions”.
“Major multinational corporations like Sibanye-Stillwater which should be industry leaders in creating a safety culture are doing far too little to prevent accidents,” the union said in a statement.“Major multinational corporations like Sibanye-Stillwater which should be industry leaders in creating a safety culture are doing far too little to prevent accidents,” the union said in a statement.
Last August five mineworkers died after sections of a gold mine collapsed outside Johannesburg.Last August five mineworkers died after sections of a gold mine collapsed outside Johannesburg.
The country possesses rich mineral reserves and has some of the world’s deepest gold mines. South Africa possesses rich mineral reserves and has some of the world’s deepest gold mines.
Gold was for many decades the backbone of South Africa’s economy, but production has declined sharply due to depletion of reserves.Gold was for many decades the backbone of South Africa’s economy, but production has declined sharply due to depletion of reserves.
Associated Press and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
South AfricaSouth Africa
MiningMining
AfricaAfrica
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