Faith Ndou
CHIVI-A miner died after a rope attached to a bucket snapped while he was being lifted out of a shaft during a blasting operation at Shongamiti 22 Mine in Chivi.
The incident occurred on March 6 at around 2130 hours at the mine located in Headman Gororo area under Chief Nemauzhe.
The deceased, Andrew Ngwenya was part of a team of six workers who had been working at the mine since around 1700 hours.
According to the police, at around 2000 hours Ngwenya went down into the mine shaft with another worker to set explosives for blasting rocks.
After the explosives were set, the other worker was lifted out of the shaft using a rubber bucket, leaving Ngwenya behind to ignite the explosives.
At around 2130 hours, Ngwenya lit the explosives and signalled to his colleagues to pull him out of the shaft using the same bucket.
However, while he was being lifted, the rope attached to the bucket snapped, causing him to fall back into the mine shaft.
Moments later, the explosives exploded.
At around 2240 hours, another worker went back into the shaft and discovered Ngwenya dead, his body covered with rock particles.
The police attended the scene and the body was taken to Chivi District Hospital for a post-mortem.
Zimbabwe Republic Police Masvingo provincial spokesperson Inspector Kudakwashe Dehwa confirmed the incident and urged miners to prioritise safety measures to prevent similar accidents.
