A tragic incident unfolded near Johannesburg, where a toxic gas leak claimed at least 16 lives, including those of three children. According to South African police, the incident is believed to be linked to illicit mining activities.
Emergency services had initially anticipated as many as 24 casualties in the Angelo informal settlement, located on the eastern fringe of Johannesburg. However, the Gauteng Province premier, Panyaza Lesufi, in collaboration with the police, later revised the death toll to 16 after a thorough recount. Among the deceased were children aged one, six and 15, while two individuals were transported to the hospital for medical care.
Rescue and recovery teams continue to comb through the affected area, attempting to determine the full scope of the casualties.
William Ntladi, the emergency services spokesperson, disclosed that preliminary information indicated the cylinders of gas, found in a shack, were being utilised by illicit miners for gold processing. The area is known for its vast network of disused gold mines, exploited by zama zamas or fortune seekers, as locally called, who process their find above ground.
Approximately a third of all mined gold originated from Johannesburg’s Witwatersrand mines. As stated by the South African Human Rights Commission, there are approximately 30,000 illicit miners in South Africa, with many falling victim to shaft collapses, gas leaks, and violent confrontations.
Ntladi revealed that the deaths in the Angelo settlement were attributed to a gas cylinder leak within a shack. The leak has now been sealed, and teams are searching within a 100-meter radius of the cylinder for additional casualties.
Forensic investigators and pathologists are en route to the scene, with the bodies yet to be moved. “The bodies are still where they are on the ground,” Ntladi emphasised.
Illegal mining in the country has increased due to a high rate of unemployment and the collapse of the mining industry, attributed to depleted reserves, plummeting commodity prices, rising employment costs, and erratic power supplies.
In an unsettling incident, the victims, including women and children, succumbed to gas inhalation at an informal settlement in Boksburg, to the east of Johannesburg.
Wednesday’s leak is associated with illicit gold mining in the vicinity. Gas leaks, often caused by the actions of illegal gold miners known as zama zamas, are a frequent hazard as these individuals attempt to extract gold from pilfered soil from abandoned mine shafts.
The Gauteng Province Premier, Panyaza Lesufi, described the scene as heart-breaking, with bodies scattered haphazardly. As search and rescue teams continue their efforts, the fear is that more bodies could be found.
In an emotional interview, a bereaved Mozambican widow living in South Africa revealed her husband was among the victims. In her distress, she voiced concerns about repatriating her husband’s body back to Mozambique due to her unemployed status and his previous work as a part-time handyman.
Lesufi added that the local residents had voiced their concerns about the area being overrun by illegal miners and appealed for military and security intervention.
“We need a tactical unit to police this kind of crime. Illegal miners are normally heavily armed,” he pointed out.
Regrettably, this incident occurs only six months following a gas tanker explosion on Christmas Eve, which took the lives of 41 individuals in the same town.
Image Credit: @Lesufi/Twitter
