City Press reports that fed up and disillusioned, former workers of a closed Mpumalanga gold mine are prepared to risk their own lives by launching a daring attempt to recover the bodies of their three former colleagues who have been buried 60m below the surface since 2016.
The entrance to the Lily Mine in Louisville near Barberton caved in on 5 February 2016. Professional mine rescue teams abandoned the site three years ago after realising that it was going to be a mission impossible because of the unstable ground to reach the container office that had plunged down with the three workers inside without risking their own lives. The trio’s bodies were left buried underground. In the meantime, the families’ grief has been prolonged with corporate wrangling over the sale of the mine. Emboldened by the zama-zamas who have been mining illegally at Lily Mine, nine former workers went underground last week to assess the situation for themselves – an action which the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) is unhappy about. They came out knowing exactly what they needed to do next. But, their mission will not come cheap. Firstly they need equipment such as a water pump, a Tractor Loader Backhoe, chain blocks, timber, protective clothes and lights. Secondly, the team will also need the expertise of a safety officer, a geologist and a surveyor. As a result, they have started negotiations with various retired experts to help. DMR spokesperson Ayanda Shezi said the department was totally opposed to the workers’ initiative to go underground.
- Read the full original of Sizwe Sama Yende’s report in the above regard on page 13 of City Press of 16 June 2019
- Read too, Creditors and bidders clash over Lily Mine, on page 18 of The Sunday Independent of 16 June 2019
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