AN UNEXPLAINED explosion seriously injured two Old Nic Mine workers near Killarney, Bulawayo, yesterday morning.
MTHANDAZO NYONI OWN CORRESPONDENT
The injured, Langton Zinema and Leejoy Mavaure, were rushed to United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) where they were admitted for treatment.
Mavaure, who suffered severe injuries, could not speak and just cried in pain when Southern Eye visited him at UBH in the afternoon.
Seven other miners working in a nearby shaft escaped the explosion uninjured.
Some of the mineworkers said Zinema and Mavaure were working underground when all of a sudden there was a massive explosion.
“They were charging the sub-level (a machine used to drill) after drilling and that is when the explosion occurred,” said one worker.
“We rushed to the scene and found the two lying in a pool of blood. Management called an ambulance that took them to hospital.
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“What is of great concern is the fact that the underground manager Ovas Mudoni was busy attending to endless disciplinary hearings with other managers instead of monitoring all activities underground,” the worker said.
Some workers accused mine management of ignoring safety conditions by just sending miners to work without adhering to the necessary safety precautions.
“They are not taking any proper safety precautions and just send workers in harm’s way,” said another worker.
“They are busy conducting endless disciplinary hearings daily instead of addressing safety issues.
“We are working under duress and this could have contributed to today’s accident.”
Old Nic Mine management declined to speak to Southern Eye saying they did not have any business with the media.
Old Nic Mine is one of the oldest gold mines in the country.
