Mining Weekly reports that following a series of four seismic events in quick succession on Sunday, a 38-year-old female trackless crew leader was killed after being struck by a rock ejected from the rock face of Gold Fields’ South Deep mine.
The gold miner reported that three of the seismic events had been been 1.4 and 1.9 in magnitude. The deceased employee received immediate attention on the scene by paramedics, but succumbed to her injuries soon after the incident. Three other team members sustained minor injuries and have since been discharged from hospital. Gold Fields suspended operations at South Deep on Sunday out of respect for the deceased and to allow employees access to counselling. The affected area will remain closed until it is deemed safe. The Department of Mineral Resources was due to conduct an in loco inspection on Monday. Gold Fields CEO Nick Holland on Monday said this was the company’s first fatality this year and came amid significant improvements in the group’s safety performance over the past five years.
- Read the full original of the report on this story at Mining Weekly
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