Johannesburg - Anglo American, one of the stalwarts of SA’s platinum sector, says an employee was fatally injured in a fall of ground incident at Khuseleka Shaft, Thembelani Mine, on June 3.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the company sent its condolences to the miner’s family, but provided very little other detail.
Fall of ground is among the deadliest of mining accidents.
The latest available official mining death statistics, for 2014, show that 84 miners were killed in South Africa in that year, the lowest ever in the country's mining history.
Of the 84 deaths, 44 occurred in gold mines, 15 in platinum mines, nine in coal mines, and 16 in other mines such as those digging out diamond, chrome, copper, and iron ore.
The deaths were grouped into “general classification” fatalities (35 percent), falls-of-ground (30 percent), and transportation-related deaths (17 percent).
General classification includes inhaling dangerous fumes, being struck by an object, and falling from height.
Anglo American Platinum CEO Chris Griffith says “our thoughts are with the family, friends and colleagues of the deceased and we are providing support and assistance to all involved”.
“While the number of fall of ground incidents across the mining industry has decreased in recent years as a result of a wide range of changes that have been implemented to operating practices and safety controls, they still present a major risk and we continue to focus our energies on working towards zero harm for all our people.”
The Thembelani mine is a large open pit mine located in the north-western part of South Africa in Rustenburg, North West, according to WikiPedia.
The resource site says Thembelani represents one of the largest platinum reserves in South Africa having estimated reserves of 15.6 million oz of platinum and produces around 100 000 oz of platinum year.
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