‘Battlefields response was swift’

GOVERNMENT has refuted claims that it reacted slowly to the Battlefields mine disaster saying its team was on the ground a few hours after the incident was reported.

Some quarters accused Government of responding slowly to the mine flooding that took place at Battlefields and claimed at least 24 lives, while eight were rescued.

Cabinet yesterday received an update on the ongoing recovery work at Battlefields where four miners are still strapped at Cricket Mine and said it shared the extreme anxiety being borne by the affected families

Speaking at a Monetary Policy Review breakfast meeting organised by the Zimbabwe Miners Federation yesterday, Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development Polite Kambamura, said claims that Government had not responded promptly to the disaster were not true as the Government team arrived a few moments after the disaster was reported.

“I want to make it clear that contrary to what is being reported in the media, Government responded on time to the mine disaster,” said Deputy Minister Kambamura.

He said the challenge was not the time of response, but the nature of the pumps that were brought which were not fit for purpose.

“The size of shafts and their nature, which are not straight made it difficult for pumps to be used to de-water the shafts.

“We had to resort to the use of smaller pumps, which takes time, efforts to pump water out of the mines is still ongoing as of now,” he said.