News24 reports that according to Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, the gas leak that caused 17 people to die in Angelo informal settlement in Boksburg was caused by illegal mining activity.

He said he witnessed illegal mining activities at the informal settlement when he arrived there on Wednesday night. Apparently illegal miners cut open one of the cylinders that contained the gas, causing it to leak. Forensic experts have since removed other gas cylinders from the scene. Sixteen people died on the scene and a seventeenth person died in hospital. The youngest victim was one year old. “We witnessed that illegal activity was taking place. We also saw the gas canister [that caused the leak]. We were briefed on what could have caused the fatalities. It means people were doing an illegal business that harmed 16 people, including a one-year-old. It was heartbreaking to see that child,”Lesufi stated. He said illegal mining activity was keeping the government under siege in Gauteng. "I am calling for a completely new strategy in confronting this thing. We need a well-resourced strategy capability of our law enforcement from a higher level and a need to respond as if we are in a war zone. The figures indicate we are under siege. We have to respond," he indicated.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ntwaagae Seleka at News24

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