Johannesburg - The Ekurhuleni Urban Search and Rescue Team rescued 11 suspected illegal miners after they were trapped under boulders that had closed the entrance of an abandoned mine on land owned by Gold One in Benoni on the East Rand yesterday.
At least 10 more people who had been in a group calling for help refused to leave the shaft and police were left guarding the entrance as night fell.
Rescue workers took about eight hours to clear rocks and rubble from the mouth of the mine’s shaft, which is believed to have been blocked since Saturday night.
Initial reports yesterday suggested that about 200 illegal miners had been trapped deeper underground in a steep tunnel, but Ekurhuleni emergency services spokesman Rogers Mamaile said he could only confirm that the rescue operation included about 30 people trapped underground.
He said the rescue team had been in communication with the illegal miners and had provided them with water.
It is alleged that when the men were trying to climb to the surface, another group of illegal miners had robbed them of the gold they had mined and had thrown boulders in order to prevent them from coming up to the surface, Mamaile added.
Werner Vermaak, the spokesman for paramedic service ER24, said last night that the rescued men were being assessed medically and no injuries had been reported.
Mamaile added: “Ekurhuleni metro police are standing by to detain and question them to find out if there were more people underground.”
The miners were found on Sunday while emergency services were conducting operations focusing on illegal mining in the area. They heard screaming from the abandoned mine.
Grant Stuart, the vice-president of investor relations at Gold One, said his company had never used the mine as the land was an acquisition for mining prospecting.
“We have closed the mine according to the Department of Mineral and Resources requirement for an old declamation shaft,” Stuart said.
“As we understand it the illegal miners have undermined the enclosure that we have put in place and re-accessed the shaft in order to mine.” - Business Report