Miner crushed to death in Zvishavane

By Lovemore Zigara

ZVISHAVANE – A face preparation supervisor at Zvishavane-based platinum miner, Mimosa Mining Company, was crushed to death by a rock at one of the mine shafts while preparing for underground mining.

Mine officials said Eric Mukazi was killed on Monday at around 3PM as workers were preparing to commence their night shift.

Workers said Mukazi’s responsibility was to ensure the safety of underground miners through inspecting the working areas before the miners could start work.

“Mukazi was checking for bad hangings when one of the rocks fell and crushed him, killing him instantly. Bad hangings are big overhead rocks that are not secure that need to be taken off before underground mine workers can come in.

“Other rocks fell burying Mukazi in the process. He was only retrieved hours later by a load, haul and dump earthmoving machine,” said one of the workers who cannot be named.

Mimosa Mining Company issued a statement confirming the incident.

“It is with great sadness that Mimosa Mining Company advises an underground fatality involving one of its Face Preparation Supervisors, Eric Mukazi. The incident occurred on August, 24, (Monday).

“In line with the company’s safety policies of attaining Zero Harm in all its operations, Mimosa Mining Company is conducting a full-scale investigation to determine the cause of the accident.

Despite the recent incident, Mimosa remains determined to attain Zero Harm in all its undertakings.

Most recently, the Company attained five million fatality free shifts and continues to rally its workforce to remain vigilant in ensuring that safety underpins all processes,” read part of the press statement. The Chronicle