Vusumuzi Dube
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu,[email protected]
AN illegal gold miner died while his counterpart escaped unharmed when a disused mine shaft they were working in collapsed in the Jacaranda area of Gwanda, leaving the now deceased trapped underneath boulders.
Efforts to retrieve the body of the now deceased, Dolphin Moyo (32) started on Monday evening following the incident and resumed on Tuesday but did not yield much fruit as an excavator was required.
A group of gold panners from the area converged on Wednesday morning and using chisels and hammers managed to manually remove the boulders and retrieved the body around5PM, with some body parts having been crushed by the boulders.
Moyo’s skull had been crushed while some of his body parts had been dismantled from his body. The rescue team had to meticulously go through the rubble to salvage every little piece of his body.
They collected the loose bits into small sacks while the main body was placed in a big sack. Some of Moyo’s remains were stuck onto rocks and the rescue team had to package them as well.
Moyo’s wife who was at the scene momentarily with their two week old baby, Ms Una Katsaruware, said the death of her husband has left her shattered.\
She said she almost suffered a double loss because soon after the incident her two week old baby fell unconscious and was rushed to the Gwanda Provincial Hospital and resuscitated through oxygen system.
“He left in the morning to try and make some money through mining as that is what he normally does. Often he does his mining along rivers and I don’t know why on that particular day he decided to work from this disused shaft,” said Ms Katsaruware.
“I got the news around 4PM that he was trapped under the shaft. I was hoping and praying that he would be found alive after being stuck in a tunnel but I was devastated when after hours of digging, his lifeless body started showing.”
Ms Katsaruware said her late husband has left her with a two week old baby and a three-year-old toddler. She said she does not know how she will fend for the children as she is not working.
Mr Michael Sibanda who escaped the incident said it was their first time to work in that disused shaft. He said the incident has left him shaken and he was still trying to come to terms with it.
“I had known Dolphin for about two years and we had done a lot of mining jobs together. While we were working I suddenly felt the shaft shaking and I alerted him.
“I rushed to one end and the side where my mate was standing collapsed and he was buried under the boulders. I quickly rushed to the nearest police base,” said Mr Sibanda.
Matabeleland South provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Chiratidzo Dube confirmed the incident.
“I can confirm that we recorded a mine accident where an illegal miner died after a shaft he was working in collapsed. Dolphin Moyo and Michael Sibanda were working in a shaft in Jacaranda area on 20 October at around 4PM,” she said.
“Sibanda noticed that the shaft was unstable and alerted the now deceased and they decided to stop. The shaft immediately collapsed and Sibanda was able to escape but Moyo was buried by boulders.
“The matter was reported to the police who attended the scene. The body of the now deceased was retrieved two days later.”
Insp Dube urged members of the public to desist from engaging in illegal mining activities. She said a number of lives have been lost due to illegal mining.
The councilor of the area, Alderman Knowledge Ndlovu, said the area where the two illegal panners were working is under council land.
He said there is a concern of illegal panners who are conducting their activities close to people’s houses.
“As you can see here, these people were panning a few metres from people’s houses. This has become a worrying trend in our town as we have seen more people conducting illegal mining activities on council land, which is close to houses.
“We call upon the police to address this problem, which poses a huge threat to the environment and residents,” he said.
-@DubeMatutu
Online Reporter