All 15 artisanal miners trapped at Redwing Mine in Penhalonga near Mutare when a shaft collapsed last week were rescued yesterday, following the deployment of top technology by the Government to figure out their exact location underground.
Teams from local mining companies such as Metallon Corporation, who own Redwing Mine, Freda Rebecca Gold Mine, and others, worked tirelessly with the Government to ensure the miners were rescued, four days after they were trapped.
Yesterday, Mines and Mining Development Minister Zhemu Soda said they were proud of the effort put in by the rescue teams, which ensured everyone came out alive, much to the surprise of many, especially in opposition politics who had been quick to say all the miners had died.
The 15 rescued miners were identified as Tatenda Gumbo, Kudakwashe Mucharwa, Simbarashe Siziba, Godson Mandimutsa, Owen Jaison, Maxwell Matsangomba, Joseph Sithole, Promise Gumbo, Akim Tarambira, Conrad Tsiga, Brian Mucharwa, Robson Magamba, Believe Mutema, Kodzana Dzina and Douglas Mhlanga.
Some of the rescued artisanal miners at Redwing Mine in Penhalonga.
Said Minister Soda: “Initially we had four that came out and now we have a total of 15 that have been rescued. We want to thank the Lord who has made these people survive.
“What we got from them (the rescued) is that the whole mine underground is collapsed and this must be known by everyone. An assessment will have to be done before operations or activities resume at this mine.
“But we are grateful that all of them have survived. I want to thank everybody who has participated in this rescue operation: all Government departments and the community around as well as others in the mining industry such as Freda Rebecca who came in with all forms of assistance.”
Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister July Moyo said the country now had cutting edge technology that can be deployed to rescue people when such accidents occur.
“We are all happy because the rescue operation was a success and the level of coordination among Government and the private sector was excellent, led by the Civil Protection Unit of Zimbabwe,” said Minister Moyo.
“Other mines also joined in this rescue operation; it was a well-coordinated rescue operation. We are very happy that Zimbabwe has the capabilities and technologies to rescue its people when we have challenges or accidents of this nature.
“Those who were trapped were also very professional. I am told that when the mine collapsed, they went deeper down to ensure they will not be hit by the falling debris.
“I also want to thank their families who were very cooperative while waiting for the completion of the rescue mission,” said Minister Moyo.
Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs and Devolution Advocate Misheck Mugadza said stakeholders had almost given up on the rescue operations.
“I want to thank the Government led by President Mnangagwa for being responsive. The challenge we all had was huge and we almost lost hope.
Part of the crowd huge that gathered to witness the rescue of the 15 artisanal miners who had been trapped for four days at Redwing Mine in Penhalonga near Mutare.
“The truth of the matter is that there was cooperation between all Government departments. We also appreciate the dedication that we got from our Minister of Mines and Mining Development who was here for the past two days to see to it that we retrieve our children,” said Minister Mugadza.
The rescued artisanal miners are registered and were operating legally in the area under Redwing Mine, which is located next to Mabvuku-Tafara legislator Cde Scott Sakupwanya’s Better Brands mining area.
The miners who were trapped are not his employees, contrary to allegations made on social media.
Similarly, the social media was falsely claiming that 100 artisanal miners were trapped, when in fact they were 15.