LUSAKA, Zambia
Nearly 300 miners were successfully rescued Friday from a gold mine in South Africa after they were trapped the previous day because of a shaft incident.
“Sibanye-Stillwater can confirm that all 260 employees have safely returned to surface following the shaft incident at Kloof-seven on May 22. At no point was there any risk of injury to employees during the incident which occurred when the skip door of the Kloof-seven sub-shaft rock winder opened at the loading point level-39, impacting levels 40, 41 and below,” the Gauteng-Johannesburg based miner said in a statement.
It said comprehensive safety inspections and a shaft integrity assessment, along with necessary repairs were carried out before the miners could be safely brought to the surface.
“The first group of employees surfaced today (Friday) at 13:30 CAT (1130GMT) with the remaining employees returning safely from about 19:30 CAT tonight. Based on these safety evacuations, a decision was made for the employees to remain at their respective stations underground rather than use emergency escape routes, which required long walking distances,” said Sibanye-Stillwater.
It said mine rescue and safety teams were promptly deployed and measures taken to ensure the employees were safe and had access to food and water, adding that all of the 260 miners would undergo thorough medical examinations if required, while support would be extended to employees’ families.
“Operations will only resume once all safety and risk assessments are concluded and the shaft is deemed safe. Safety is our priority and we will not resume operations until we are confident that all the necessary remedial actions have been implemented,” added Sibanye-Stillwater chief executive officer Neal Froneman.
