Artisanal miners warned against operating during rainy season

Judith Phiri , Business Reporter

ARTISANAL and small-scale miners have been urged to stop mining activities during the rainy season to avoid possible mine collapses because of the wet ground.

The rainy season is usually associated with an increase in fatalities within the mining sector with some mines collapsing due to lack of proper supporting structures.

In an interview, the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development Chief Government Mining Engineer, Engineer Michael Munodawafa said miners operating in areas considered dangerous should suspend their operations during the rainy season.

“My brothers and sisters who are into mining as well as those who have relatives carrying out mining activities around our beautiful country of Zimbabwe let us preserve lives this rainy season in the mining sector. During the rainy season, we lose a lot of lives of our miners through flooding, drowning, collapse of the ground and ground subsidence,” he said.

He said because of such dangers they were advising the miners to avoid working in areas along rivers or water ways to avoid flooding of shafts from rain upstream and also drowning.

Eng Munodawafa said miners should also avoid old mines or sites as when it rains, the soil is saturated, and it gets unstable and is bound to collapse anytime.

He added: “Avoid sinking shafts in low-lying areas as there is a danger of miners being flooded or drowned by free-flowing waters during the rains. We therefore advise our miners to avoid working in the above conditions. They should visit our provincial offices (Inspectorate Department) for advice or completely stop mining altogether and resume when the rains stop.”

Eng Munodawafa said miners were also reminded to put into practice what was taught to them by the Ministry through its Mining Engineering Department during the Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) campaign that was rolled out to all the provinces during the year.

He said those who attended those campaigns are encouraged to share what they learnt with their colleagues in the industry to save lives.

“Let us work safely and enjoy our festive season and resume our mining when rains are gone.

”Previous rainy seasons have seen the country witnessing a series of fatal gold mines accidents that have occurred around the country.

During the rainy season, the ground will be weak and most likely to collapse. Young Miners Foundation (YMF) chief executive officer (CEO) Mr Payne Kupfuwa who is also a miner in Zvishavane said this was one of the most dangerous seasons for artisanal and small-scale miners as a number of lives have been lost before during such period.

“As miners we should preserve life and maintain a safety culture this rainy season. Safety is first before we look at the returns, hence let us practice responsible mining.”

He said most artisanal and small-scale miners have not adequately put resources in developing their mines, therefore requiring them to be the ones that try by all means to adhere to the rainy season safety measures.

Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Mineral Workers Union (ZIDAMWU) is also on record calling upon the extractive industry players particularly in the artisanal and small-scale mining sector to adequately prepare as part of efforts to eliminate fatal accidents.

The post Artisanal miners warned against operating during rainy season appeared first on Zimbabwe Situation.

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