Africa-Press – Mozambique. Four Mozambicans are among the 75 seriously injured in the platinum mine elevator failure incident in South Africa, which caused the death of 11 people, a spokesperson for Impala Platinum told Lusa today.
“There are no fatalities from Mozambique. Four Mozambicans were injured and are hospitalised,” Tumelo Nkisi told Lusa about the accident in the mine in the South African province of North West.
Eleven people died and 75 were evacuated to various private hospitals in the region after an elevator plunged down the shaft at the Impala Rustenburg platinum mine about 200 kilometres west of Johannesburg.
“This accident marks the darkest day in the history of Implats,” company administrator Nico Muller has commented.
The incident in Shaft 11 occurred in the late afternoon of Monday, November 27, as miners were surfacing at the end of their shift, he said.
“Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (Implats) is devastated to report that 11 employees tragically lost their lives in the serious accident at Impala Rustenburg’s 11 Shaft at 16:54 yesterday afternoon. A further 75 employees were injured in the accident and were transferred and admitted for treatment to four hospitals in the region. The mine rescue operation is complete and all 86 employees are accounted for,” the company explains in statement .
“On Monday, 27 November 2023, the 11 Shaft personnel conveyance was hoisting employees to surface at the end of their shift. At 16:54, the conveyance unexpectedly started descending. Its rapid descent was stopped by the conveyance counterweight becoming trapped by the jack catches. All emergency protocols were observed during the event and paramedics and our proto (search and rescue) teams were immediately mobilised,” it adds.
The company says it has opened an investigation into the incident, while announcing the immediate suspension of “all mining operations” in the region.
Implats is one of the world’s leading platinum producers, employing more than 66,000 people in South Africa, according to the 2023 annual financial report released in June, consulted by Lusa.
In addition to Impala Rustenburg, Implats owns four more mines in the country, with further mining operations in Zimbabwe and Canada.
“This is the darkest day in the history of Implats and our hearts are heavy for the lives lost and the individuals affected by this devastating accident,” Implats CEO Nico Muller says in the company’s statement. “We are deeply shocked and saddened by the loss of our colleagues and are in the process of ensuring all next of kin have been contacted. Implats is offering ongoing support to the families and colleagues of those lost in service. We also hold our injured colleagues in our thoughts at this incredibly difficult time.
“I extend my deepest gratitude to the local medical services from the Bojanala District and the Impala Medical Services team who worked tirelessly during this crisis to provide the necessary emergency paramedic services, secure additional ICU beds and ambulances, mobilise additional general surgeons and secure the support of three private hospitals to assist our Impala Hospital in caring for the critically injured.
“We are also extremely grateful to all the proto and rescue teams for their tireless and courageous efforts, working under very difficult circumstances, to rescue our Shaft 11 team members. We value the efforts of all stakeholders coming together in this extremely difficult time, particularly the emergency responders,” the statement concludes.
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