NONE of the 260 miners stuck underground following an accident at a Sibanye-Stillwater gold mine in South Africa have been injured or killed, a senior union official said on Friday, as the company said 79 had been brought to the surface.
The miners were stuck underground after the hoist system used to access a shaft at the Kloof gold mine - one of Sibanye’s deepest, situated about 60 km (37 miles) west of Johannesburg - was damaged in an accident on Thursday.
National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) Health and Safety Chairperson Duncan Luvuno told journalists he feared for the safety of those still inside the mine.
“Fortunately there were no fatalities or injuries,“ he said. “But for ... 24 hours people were not eating or drinking anything. This is not adequate. Some have chronic diseases,“ he said.
Journalists were barred by security guards from getting near to the site, but a Reuters reporter saw some of the miners, looking tired but in good health, walk to the perimeter of the company grounds and board buses.
But relatives of those still in the mine expressed shock and worry that their loved ones remained underground.
“I haven’t slept a wink,“ said Mamodise Mokone, whose husband was among the miners.
“I just want to tell the management or whoever is in charge: I just want my husband out alive,“ she screamed at the top of her voice.
Sibanye earlier said all the workers were safe after what it called a “shaft incident” in the Kloof 7 shaft and were gathered at an assembly point where they had been provided with food as efforts were under way to bring them out of the mine.
“The remaining 181 employees ... have been provided with food and will be hoisted to the surface as soon as safety to hoist is confirmed,“ the company said in a statement.
A spokesperson had earlier said 289 workers were underground.
Johannesburg-based Sibanye is among only a few South African miners squeezing profits from some of the world’s deepest and costliest gold mines. Sibanye is digging for gold at depths of about 3,200 meters (about 2 miles) at the Kloof 7 shaft.
The Kloof mine, which accounts for 14% of Sibanye’s total gold output, also operates two other shafts. The company mines platinum-group metals in South Africa and the United States as well.
Mining accidents are not uncommon in South Africa, where many abandoned mines have been taken over by informal diggers.
Earlier this year, at least 78 bodies were pulled from an illegal gold mine after police cut off food and water supplies for months in an attempt to crack down on illegal mining activity.
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