A worker from scrap metal dealer got the shock of his life when he stepped right through the tar road outside his place of work.

What at first glance appeared to be a pothole in Mijn Street, Roodepoort, turned out to be part of the road that collapsed caused by an underground tunnel dug by illegal miners.

According to Chris Fourie, manager of Horn Trading, situated at the corners of Van Wyk and Mijn Street, one of his workers was crossing the road to reach an offloading truck on Wednesday when he stepped right through the tar road.

“He was a little shocked that a hole suddenly appeared underfoot,” says Fourie, explaining, “He came into the office and alerted me, and when we looked down the hole, we realised it was approximately two metres deep. We also saw a spade and a pick at the bottom of the hole.”

Fourie adds that a minute or two later when they looked down the hole again, the spade and the pick had disappeared.

Upon closer inspection of the hole, they realised that it was in fact a tunnel.

“The tunnel runs across the road toward the mine dump in one direction, and up toward Van Wyk Street in the other.

“It looks like they started digging toward our premises but had not gotten far.”

Police were called to the scene, who in turn notified the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), which issued a statement a short while later, announcing the closure of Mijn Street.

JRA has urged residents to adhere to the closure and not tamper with the barriers put in place.

Meanwhile, Fourie is worried about the ramifications of the tunnel and subsequent closure.

“These illegal miners have no regard for legitimate users of the infrastructure that they destroy. Our customers now must drive around the block to access our services, and even then, they cannot park in front of the business, because the road could collapse further at any moment.

“What if it collapsed while a car was driving over it or if one of our trucks ended up in the hole?”

According to Colonel Clive de Freitas from the Roodepoort Police Station, illegal miners are causing untold damage to infrastructure throughout Roodepoort.

“We saw the same thing happening at Nick Toomey Boulevard and Gustav Street not too long ago,” he says.

“Infrastructure damage caused by illegal mining is one of the top priorities of the Roodepoort police, and we are making progress in combatting it.”

Meanwhile, there is no word yet from JRA as to the extent of damage to Mijn Street, and when repairs will commence.