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Contractors testify Lily Mine ignored instability warnings

Mr Ales Maneja, a former excavator operator on the mine, said workers had continuously raised concerns with mine management about the stability of the ground, but it did not listen to them.

March 10, 2017
Trevor Hlungwani 1 minute read

MBOMBELA – Fresh details about what could have led to the collapse in Lily Mine in February 5, 2016, opened new wounds in the hearts of the families of the three trapped miners this week.

An inquiry into the disaster started at the Agricultural Research Council this week.

Also read: New operation to recover buried container to commence soon 
Mr Ales Maneja, a former excavator operator on the mine, said workers had continuously raised concerns with mine management about the stability of the ground, but it did not listen to them.

Just after Maneja’s testimony, family members of Mr Solomon Nyerenda, Ms Yvonne Mnisi and Ms Pretty Nkambule, started crying.

Also read: Lily miners recount collapse 

 

Solomon Nyerenda,Pretty Nkambule and Yvonne Mnisi remain trapped underground.

Vantage Goldfields started mining at Lily with an open-pit operation.

Later the method was changed to undergound mining. All the soil that was extracted was used to fill the open-cast hole. Maneja told the inquiry that the mine should have waited until the surface had stabilised.

Also read: Illegal mining was rife months before Lily collapse 
Maneja said on the day of the collapse, Nyerenda called him from inside the container but he was too busy.

“A few seconds after that I heard a big sound and the container he was in disappeared into the sinkhole,” he said.


On Tuesday, Vantage Goldfields CEO, Mr Mark McChesney, testified that its internal investigations revealed that illegal mining was rife in the mine a few months before the collapse.

McChesney said their continuous assessments about the mine safety were satisfactory.

“As we continued to mine, there were minor falls that we were made aware of, but our specialists assisted us to make sure that we avoid a possible collapse. We had a low injury rate and there had never been fatalities until that day,” he said.

“In 2015, illegal mining was on the rise. We engaged with our security company to understand if indeed this was true and whether they were involved. They could not provide answers to that and that is when we conducted our investigations,” he said.

Mr Richard Spoor, who is representing the victims’ families and Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) workers, argued that the mine should explain how thick the crown pillar was.

“We suspect that the mine didn’t adhere to rules to leave 5,8 metres between the pillar and the surface,” he said.

Spoor alleged that the mine could have carved out the mine pillar because it was believed to contain a lot of gold.

“It is clear that the rock fell and the mine collapsed and fell down. The question is why? We understand we need a lot of information. One of the pieces of the information is about the history of the collapses and falls in Lily Mine,” said Spoor.

His assertion that the ground could have been waterlogged and become unstable was supported by the mine’s former rock mechanic consultant, Mr Rudi Kirsten. According to his testimony, read out in his absence, his specific concern was the crown pillar.

“I reported to them that the area between the pillar and floor was unstable because of water. I recommended the pumping of water from the ground,” his statement said.

He never heard from mine and did not know if it did implement the recommendations.

The inquiry will recommence with cross-examinations on Wednesday March 22.

March 10, 2017
Trevor Hlungwani 1 minute read
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