The workers have been trapped approximately 890m underground in Tunnel 6 since Tuesday morning (17/2). As of Wednesday, the miners have been trapped for more than 30 hours.

Specialist teams from Mines Rescue Services have now been brought in to assist, while K9 units have been at the mine trying to retrieve the miners.

The Kimberley-based mine said in a statement after the incident five workers were unaccounted for and that their families had been notified, and support measures are being put in place.

The mine requested that the privacy of the workers and their families be respected during what it described as a difficult time.

Ekapa Minerals confirmed a mud rush incident occurred at its Joint Shaft Mine and that five employees are unaccounted for. The miners have been cut off from communication, according to management, and are currently inaccessible.

“Where we stand, we still have five people unaccounted for; we have a fair idea of where they are,” said Ekapa Mine general manager Howard Marsden. “We have tried to determine proof of life, but we are not there at the moment yet.

“We are still hopeful that they are alive; all rescue efforts are ongoing with various teams from Mines Rescue Services, and we are doing everything we can to make contact with them.

“Ongoing rescue efforts are difficult at this stage as we still have a lot of water coming at us, so we are pumping and putting in additional pumping. So we have a multi-pronged approach to try to make contact.

“At the moment, we don’t have communication with them. We have tried on various attempts to try and do that, and at this stage, we haven’t had a response,” he said on Wednesday afternoon.

Two years ago, at the same mine, a mining development contractor died when the old Dutoitspan mine shaft collapsed.

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OFM News/Zenande Mpame cvs