An employee of the Harmony gold mining company’s Kusasalethu mine near Carletonville tragically died in an engineering-related incident on Monday afternoon, June 6.

“Our heartfelt condolences go out to those impacted by this loss of life. We are deeply saddened and very concerned by the frequency of incidents, particularly at this mine. It’s unacceptable. A safety day was held at Kusasalethu on Tuesday, June 7 where everyone – including the unions – reinforced safety messages and emphasised the importance of our safety and accountability values.

Our priority at this stage is to support the families, colleagues and friends impacted by this tragedy, and to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the reason for yet another incident,” said Peter Steenkamp, Harmony chief executive officer.

Head of communications Sihle Maake said the relevant authorities have been informed and an investigation into the incident is currently underway.