Zim in race to save miners

Appeal for funds for rescue efforts as dozens of artisanal miners trapped in two flooded mines

Harare – Rescue workers retrieved 24 bodies and eight survivors on Saturday from two flooded gold mines in Zimbabwe, where officials fear dozens more illegal miners are still trapped, state TV reported. “Eight of the trapped miners have been rescued ... while 24 bodies have been retrieved to date as rescue efforts continue at Battlefields Mine,” the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation reported.

The two disused mines are situated near the town of Kadoma, 145km southwest of the capital Harare. The rescued received medical attention on site before being taken to hospital, but were in a stable condition, the report added. Television footage showed some of the men, in soaked, muddy clothes, being helped to a makeshift clinic.

In a clip posted on Twitter, one survivor told journalists that the water had risen to neck level, forcing them to stand for days until it receded. On Friday, the government said that between 60 and 70 “artisanal” miners were trapped in two shafts. It launched an appeal for $200,000 (about R2,8m) to be used “to pump out water, feeding the bereaved families and the [rescue] teams on the ground, transportation and burial of the victims”, local government minister July Moyo said in a statement. “Given the magnitude of this disaster, we kindly appeal to individuals, development partners and the corporate world for assistance in cash and kind,” he said. Zimbabwe is in the throes of a deep economic crisis, the worst in a decade. Annual inflation shot to 56.90%, up from 42.09% in December 2018, according to official statistics released on Friday, the highest increase in a decade. Economists say in reality, prices have gone up more than threefold in recent months. Formal unemployment is estimated at over 90% and artisanal gold mining, mostly in mines long abandoned by big corporates, is widespread – providing a source of income for many.

Although artisanal mining is not banned outright in Zimbabwe it is not regulated. –

‘‘ We kindly appeal to the corporate world ... for assistance in cash and kind

Onlookers wait for news as efforts to save trapped artisanal gold miners continue in economically struglling Zimbabwe.

/PHOTOS: REUTERS Above left, a rescued miner is carried from a pit, and above, a mine rescuer climbs out of a shaft as efforts to retrieve more trapped miners proceed in Kadoma, Zimbabwe. Rescue workers retrieved 24 bodies and eight survivors from the flooded gold mines on Saturday, but government officials fear that dozens more may still be trapped inside the mines.

Above, rescued miners sit in a tent after being brought to the surface. They were forced to stand for days to avoid drowning after the water rose to neck level. Left, a rescue worker.