Adhere to safety and health protocols, miners told

MUTASA South legislator Regai Tsunga (MDC Alliance) has decried failure by illegal miners to adhere to safety and health protocols, saying this had led to unnecessary loss of lives as people continue to perish in mineshafts.

Tsunga said this in reference to the Penhalonga mineshaft accident which occured at the weekend claiming two lives, while several other illegal miners are feared to be still trapped underneath.

“This is a disaster that could have been avoided. It is a very disturbing occurrence as elementary occupational safety and health protocols were clearly not observed in the whole operation at the mineshafts,” Tsunga said in an interview with NewsDay.

“I will raise the matter in Parliament as a matter of national importance and I pray that all the remaining bodies of those still trapped underground will be retrieved without delay for some decent burial,” he said.

The MP said the whole matter was a result of gross negligence, adding that it must be fully investigated.

Illegal miners in the area told NewsDay that they were missing their colleagues.

They also said the missing miners might have escaped using other exit points.

A Chinese company, Zhong Jian was recently granted exclusive rights to mine in the area.

Manicaland police spokesperson Inspector Tavhiringwa Kakohwa said Shuwa Mutamba and Vincent Gundo’s bodies were found in a mineshaft in the Premier Area in Penhalonga.