Illegal miner offers ‘expert’ advice how to retrieve boy, 5, from shaft

A group of illegal miners have apparently been asking local authorities to allow them to try to retrieve the boy from the mine shaft.


Illegal miners have said they would step in to recover the five-year-old boy who fell down the shaft on Saturday, if they were given the chance, reports the Boksburg Advertiser.

This comes after they criticised the methods used by mine rescue team and Ekurhuleni Disaster and Emergency Management Services, who have been conducting rescue efforts since Saturday, saying it would lead to nowhere.

Rescue efforts were temporarily suspended at around 4pm on Tuesday as rescue teams believed an excavator was needed to break through the mud which was preventing the camera from penetrating further than 120m into the shaft.

READ MORE: Efforts to rescue child who fell down mine shaft thwarted

An illegal miner, known only by the name Endurance, from Zimbabwe said he could recover the child with ease. He and his group of illegal miners have been pleading with authorities to allow them to retrieve the child.

Endurance said he worked at a mine while he was still in Zimbabwe and that he knew everything about mines.

Caxton News Service

For more news your way, follow The Citizen on Facebook and Twitter.

For more news your way

Download our app and read this and other great stories on the move. Available for Android and iOS.