Mponeng operations halted after fatality

[miningmx.com] — ANGLOGOLD Ashanti said on Thursday that a worker was killed at its Mponeng mine after a seismic event, bringing mining operations to a halt in the affected area.

“A seismic event just after 1am triggered a fall of ground, killing a winch operator and injuring his team leader … The team leader is in a stable condition in hospital,” spokesperson Alan Fine said in an e-mail.

This brings to 75 the number of workers who have been killed in South Africa’s mines so far this year, a spokesperson for the National Union of Mineworkers said.

Mponeng is the world’s deepest mine, reaching depths of close to 4 kms below the surface.