Mineworker falls to his death

By Cindy Witten
23 February 2009

A mineworker working at Gold Fields’s Kloof Gold Mine in Carletonville fell to his death on Saturday morning.

According to reports, while changing a sheve wheel , the man, who is employed as a rigger assistant, leant against a hand rail that gave way and then fell down the shaft to his death.

The incident took place at Kloof Gold Mine's main shaft. While further investigations are underway, this is the 13 mine death recorded this year.

According to an issued press release sent by the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), “NUM is very perturbed that while it was hoping that deaths will decrease further this year, the situation looks very unlikely with the current figures,” it said.

However, Corporate Affairs Manager at Gold Fields, Marritt Claassens says that the company is committed to eliminate accidents at mines.
“Since the beginning of the fiscal year (1 July 2008) 13 fatalities have been recorded at Gold Fields South African Operations. This is a significant improvement when compared to the period in the previous fiscal year,” said Claassens.

The National Union of Mineworkers calls on the Department of Minerals and Energy to strengthen its hand in ensuring the safety of mineworkers.