Just before 9pm, the department confirmed on its official Twitter account that around 1 000 employees had been safely brought to surface. (Gallo)
All 1 800 miners who were trapped underground on Tuesday have been brought to surface, the department of mineral resources confirmed in a statement on Tuesday.
It is believed that the workers were trapped at the company’s Thembelani mine after the rails used to transport workers collapsed.
The workers entered the mine on Tuesday morning and the incident happened around lunch time, when the shift would normally end, Sibanye-Stillwater spokesperson James Wellsted told EWN on Tuesday.
Just before 9pm, the department confirmed on its official Twitter account that around 1 000 employees had been safely brought to surface.
Speaking to News24, Wellsted said that the workers were not trapped, but that they were “stuck” after an incident in the shaft. No injuries had been reported at the time, he added.
This latest incident has revived concerns about safety at Sibanye operations. Earlier this year, almost 1 000 miners were trapped underground in a Sibanye Gold mine in Welkom for more than 24 hours after an electrical outage during a storm in the area. All 955 workers were rescued without incident.