Former Lily miners enlist aid in crusade to retrieve former colleagues’ bodies
The miners held talks before Christmas Day and a consensus was reached to continue searching for the bodies of their former colleagues.
BARBERTON – Former Lily Mine employees have enlisted the help of illegal miners to assist with the retrieval of the
bodies of their three colleagues who had died in the mine collapse in 2016.
Today marks 257 days since some former employees of the now closed mine embarked on a sit-in outside the mine in Barberton.
The bodies of Pretty Nkambule, Yvonne Mnisi and Solomon Nyarenda, who were inside a container when the collapse
occurred on February 5, 2016, have not been retrieved.
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Following the disaster, operations at the mine were shut down, leaving about 760 people jobless. A court battle is also ongoing between Vantage Goldfields South Africa, Siyakhula Sonke Empowerment Corporation and its subsidiary, Flaming Silver Trading, known as SSC Group.
Nhlanhla Harry Mazibuko, a former mine worker and spokesman for the group of about 60 former employees who are protesting outside the mine, lambasted the government for its lack of intervention as the lengthy court battle draws on.
“Three years have passed since we lost our colleagues in that container, and their bodies have still not been retrieved.
Government has to intervene because no one is doing anything to help us,” he told Lowvelder.
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Over the festive season, after 240 days of camping outside the mine, the ex-employees resolved to search for the
container on their own.
“South Africa is behind us now,” Mazibuko said. “The majority stands behind the issue, with or without government’s assistance.
“Tools and equipment are coming by force. Former mayors and members of the rescue team are now available to assist and invest in our mission, so we are moving forward.”
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Since their first foray underground on Christmas Day, the rescuers have encountered a number of obstacles, including blasted rock, which made the shaft inaccessible.
Commenting on last Thursday’s excursion, Mazibuko said, “Today’s developments are that there is another route
at level three that was barricaded. It goes to level four and is stable. Now we are using that route that was barricaded for safety reasons and is the safest one from level three to four.”
He remained resolute that group members would continue their efforts to retrieve the container in which their
colleagues perished.
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“Our mission continues and we have now joined forces with illegal miners. We are expecting results and progress soon,” Mazibuko concluded.
