A formal investigation into the circumstances around the Ekapa Minerals Joint Shaft Mine in Kimberley, which resulted in the loss of the lives of five miners, is to get underway.
“The department will initiate a formal investigation in line with the Mine Health and Safety Act into the circumstances surrounding the accident,” the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources said on Monday.
This, as Minister Gwede Mantashe paid a visit to the mine in the Northern Cape following the retrieval of the last of the bodies that were trapped in a mud rush incident.
The mud rush accident occurred on 17 February.
“The first body was recovered on 9 March 2026, while the remaining bodies were recovered on 22 and 23 March 2026. During the visit, Minister Mantashe, accompanied by the Chief Inspector of Mines, David Msiza, and other senior officials from the department, received a comprehensive briefing from mine management and rescue personnel on the efforts that led to the successful retrieval of the bodies,” the department said.
Mantashe extended his sincere condolences to the families of the deceased.
“Minister Mantashe commended the rescue operation, including support received from the mining sector and Minerals Council South Africa for their due diligence during the rescue operation, as well as for deploying its senior team to support the rescue mission,” said the department.
READ | N Cape government aids mine families as body of trapped Ekapa miner recovered
-SAnews.gov.za
