The Mercury reports that the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Department of Employment and Labour has indicated that, while the investigation into the deadly collapse of a sand bank in Ballito recently was still ongoing, preliminary findings have revealed that the bank collapsed because it was not properly secured.

The collapse left four construction workers dead and another injured. Provincial chief inspector Mlungisi Zondi confirmed that the investigation into the incident was still in progress. “There are no detailed findings to share except that the sand collapsed because it was not properly secured,” he said. Zondi said that at the current stage of the investigation the experts to be involved would be determined by the investigation. “First we do administrative compliance and look at what was done by parties involved. After that, we assess that and then compare it with our technical report. The department has the necessary skills to draw a reasonable conclusion. Should we require specialist knowledge we don’t possess, we will use external service providers,” he indicated. Meanwhile, trade union federation Cosatu has called on the department to include union representatives as observers in investigations involving workers who have been injured or killed while on duty.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Karen Singh at The Mercury

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