Medical and rescue teams successfully retrieved 260 miners who were trapped underground in a South African gold mine after a mine shaft was damaged.
The miners were lifted back up to the surface in groups between 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. local time Friday, mine operator Sibanye-Stillwater said in a release. Rescue and medical teams got food and water to the miners, who were not at risk of injury according to the company.
South Africa’s National Union of Mineworkers said that the trapped workers did not have food or water.
“Fortunately there were no fatalities or injuries. But for … 24 hours, people were not eating or drinking anything. This is not adequate. Some have chronic diseases,” NUM Health and Safety Chairperson Duncan Luvuno said, according to Reuters.
Sibanye-Stillwater said that the miners were trapped after a “sub-shaft rock winder skip door opened at the loading point” on the 39th level of the Kloof 7 shaft, about 37 miles west of Johannesburg Thursday. The mine shaft is about 2 miles deep.
The unexpected unloading of the skip affected the mine’s 40th and 41st levels, and the open door caused damage at the mine’s 35th level, Sibanye-Stillwater said in an initial release. With the hoisting system damaged, the company decided that the miners should stay in place instead of walking long distances to use emergency exit routes.
The Kloof 7 shaft has temporarily ceased operation. The company says it is working with NUM and South African mining authorities to ensure it is safe.
“Safety remains our core priority, and we will not resume operations until we are confident that all the necessary remedial actions have been implemented. I would like to thank our management, mine rescue, and medical teams for their dedication in ensuring that our colleagues returned safely to their families,” Sibanye-Stillwater CEO Neal Froneman said.
