Four killed, six missing after earthquake hits Sibanye Mine

Four miners have been killed and six others are missing underground after an earthquake hit the Masakhane Mine on Thursday, after a seismic incident at Sibanye-Stillwater’s Driefontein operations in Westonaria.

Thirteen miners were initially trapped about three kilometres below the surface but rescuers managed to get several out, company spokesman James Wellsted told AFP on Friday. One of the miners later died from his injuries.

“The epicentre (of the quake) was very close to where the miners were working,” Wellsted said.

News24 reports that the Sibanye-Stillwater mine has confirmed two more have been killed. Wellsted confirmed that five miners have been admitted to hospital in stable condition. Three are still unaccounted for.

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), the largest union in the country, said it was “alarmed by the deteriorating and poor safety record of Sibanye Stillwater mining company”.

In February, nearly 1,000 miners were trapped underground for 30 hours following a power cut caused by a storm in another mine owned by Sibanye-Stillwater.

A few days later, two miners were killed after ground collapsed at a mine also belonging to the group.

-Additional reporting AFP

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