Pretoria - A team of experts is working on new ways to reach the container with the three miners at Lily Mine in Barberton, Mpumalanga, says the Department of Mineral Resources.
This comes after the situation underground was declared unsafe for rescue operations to resume.
“The drilling of the second outlet was completed and a small team who went underground found that rocks were still falling, and the ground was not stable enough to send rescue teams down,” the department said.
The department said working together with the mine, labour and other experts, they will continue to explore all alternatives to ensure that the container is recovered.
It has been over a month since Yvonne Mnisi, Pretty Mazibuko and Solomon Nyerende have been trapped underground. They were working in a shipping container office when the entrance of the mine collapsed, leading to the container falling into the ground and being covered by huge rocks.
Initially, 78 workers were trapped after a central pillar collapsed. Seventy-five managed to escape unharmed.
On Sunday, Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane returned to the mine to receive an update on rescue efforts from mine management and the team of inspectors from the department.
The Minister will receive a report from the experts during the course of the week, which will assist the rescue team to chart a way forward. – SAnews.gov.za
