World News | The Death Toll from a Mining Tragedy in South Africa Rises to 13 After a Worker Dies at a Hospital
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. The death toll from a mining tragedy last week in South Africa that involved an elevator has risen to 13 people after a worker died at a hospital, the mine operator said on Monday.
Johannesburg, Dec 4 (AP) The death toll from a mining tragedy last week in South Africa that involved an elevator has risen to 13 people after a worker died at a hospital, the mine operator said on Monday.
Impala Platinum said that the worker died on Sunday from injuries sustained when the elevator plummeted around 200 metres (650 feet) down the shaft of a platinum mine while carrying workers to the surface after their shift on November 27.
Eleven workers died that day, while the latest victim was the second mineworker to die at a hospital.
The mine operator said that 50 workers remained hospitalized, with eight of them in critical care.
Impala Platinum and the South African government announced an investigation into what mine officials called a highly unusual tragedy.
The industrial elevator was carrying 86 workers to the surface when it suddenly dropped back down into the shaft, which is a kilometer (about a ½-mile) deep. The mine in the northern city of Rustenburg was the world's biggest platinum producer last year. South Africa is by far the world's biggest platinum-producing country.
Impala Platinum said it would hold a day of remembrance on Wednesday, when it would release the names of the workers who died. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)