Maputo, 29 Nov (AIM) – Four Mozambicans are among the 75 mineworkers from a platinum mine in the South African city of Rustenburg, North West province, who were seriously injured when a cage transporting the miners collapsed on Monday causing 11 deaths.
According to a spokesperson for the mining company Implats, Tumelo Nkisi, cited by the Portuguese news agency Lusa, “there are no fatalities from Mozambique. Four Mozambicans were injured and are hospitalized.”
At least 64 people have been admitted to hospitals in the area, with 22 at the Implats Private Hospital and 42 admitted at different public and private hospitals in Rustenburg.
According to another company spokesperson, Johan Thero, the incident was “so unusual and tragic” as a similar transportation system for mineworkers is widely used in South Africa and other parts of the world.
“I can confirm that yesterday afternoon during the normal back-shift procedure of picking people up from the bottom of the shaft, at 11 Shaft at our Rustenburg operation (the personnel conveyance also known as the cage) was moving upwards but unexpectedly started slipping down,” he said.
According to its 2023 annual financial report, Implats is one of the world’s leading platinum producers, employing over 66,000 people in South Africa.
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