Johannesburg - Locals at Angelo informal settlement in Boksburg blamed the tragic deaths of 17 people on zama-zamas (illegal miners) who use gas cylinders to process gold, ore, and other minerals.
Community members said that the illegal miners used cylinders to get gold out, and they alleged that gas was still inside one of the cylinders that killed the people.
“Illegal miners open up the gas cylinders, which are a metre high, allowing the gas out. There was still gas in one of the cylinders,” said one community member.
Authorities confirmed that 11 people were admitted to hospital in critical condition, the youngest being a 2-month-old, and one was in critical condition.
Law enforcement personnel made up of SAPS and Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) confiscated equipment such as cylinders, wheelbarrows, steel, shovels, and other material used for illegal mining.
In the yard where the leaking cylinder was found, more than 10 empty cylinders were impounded by police.
A total of seven people died in the yard across from where the main shack is located.
The structure, which is reported to have been used as a workshop by the illegal miners, was dismantled.
Firefighters also had to use the Jaws of Life to dismantle a number of steel structures used by illegal miners in their mining activities.
Ekurhuleni EMS spokesperson William Ntladi confirmed on Wednesday that the gas leak came from one of the cylinders used by illegal miners.
“The information we got alleged that the guys who were using the cylinder were trying to extrapolate what is thought to be gold out of the soil that they had in one of the shacks within the informal settlement,” Ntladi said.
Gauteng police commissioner Elias Mawela said the residents started smelling something funny, like rotten eggs.
He said they noticed that the smell was coming from the main shack, and some community members blew whistles, and many responded.
“Thanks God to a particular community member who managed to find the cylinder… According to him, three were opened, and he managed to close them down. Later, they realised that a number of people had collapsed and passed on. May their souls rest in peace,” said Mawela.
City of Ekurhuleni spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said illegal mining is a huge problem not only in the region but across the country.
“We have lost 17 lives: eight men, six women, and three children. This illegal mining processing plant is in the middle of the community; the disaster could have been worse. Losing so many lives is a disaster,” said Dlamini.
He said the city is trying to deal with the issue of illegal mining as best as they can, and as a local authority, they can only deal with the issue on the surface; what happens on the ground, nobody knows.
Dlamini said the Department of Mineral Resources becomes responsible for that, as well as the SAPS.
MMC for Community Services, Bridget Thusi, said the city has so far provided a mobile clinic for those who might be needing urgent assistance, and they are in the process of getting food parcels from the Department of Social Development in Gauteng. They are also going to be providing counselling for those affected, especially those who lost family members.
“In terms of shelter, we have not made plans yet. There are a lot of police activities here. They have found gas cylinders in other places after the tragic incident,” said Thusi.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and Ekurhuleni mayor Sivuyile Ngodwana visited the community members in hospital.
The Star