Page 39 - Impala News Today

Eleven workers have died while 75 others have been rushed to hospital after being injured in a tragic accident at the Impala Platinum mine

Eleven workers lost their lives, and dozens sustained injuries when an elevator malfunctioned during their ascent to the surface.

The alert was raised shortly before 5:00pm (1500 GMT) as the lift "unexpectedly started descending", according to the company.

"Eighty-six employees were standing in the lift, eleven lost their lives and all the others were transferred to hospitals," a company spokesman told AFP, adding that some of them were seriously injured.

The company told eNCA that 88 workers were involved in the incident at its No. 11 shaft platinum mining shaft and 77 have been rescued.

Mine’s operator said the lift accident happened as employees were leaving a shaft at the end of their shift.

The decision follows last night’s accident at its mine in Rustenburg, which left 11 workers dead and 75 others injured.

75 other miners were injured in the underground accident at the Implats mining facility in Rustenburg on Monday.

A total of 88 miners were on the conveyance, the report said.

Pretoria, Nov 28 (Prensa Latina) The National Union of Mineworkers of South Africa (NUM) called on the Ministry of Mineral Resources to investigate the cause of the accident that killed 11 miners at the Impala Platinum mine.