More than 300 gold panners have been trapped in a 150 metre deep mine shaft at Durban Gold Mine in Bubi District, Matabeleland North, since Monday. Yesterday the makoroza were involved in a standoff with officials from Duration Gold that owns the mine as they were refusing to come out of the shaft, fearing arrest.The mine owners had brought rescue teams. The illegal panners are said to have invaded the mine last week after allegedly tampering with the local electricity system.
Source: Zimbabwe: 300 Gold Panners Trapped – AllAfrica 16 September 2016
By Whinsley Masara
Bulawayo — More than 300 gold panners have been trapped in a 150 metre deep mine shaft at Durban Gold Mine in Bubi District, Matabeleland North, since Monday. Yesterday the makoroza were involved in a standoff with officials from Duration Gold that owns the mine as they were refusing to come out of the shaft, fearing arrest.The mine owners had brought rescue teams. The illegal panners are said to have invaded the mine last week after allegedly tampering with the local electricity system.
The makorokoza were each paying an unnamed businessman $70 to go down into the shaft using his ladder.
Some of the illegal miners said they each paid $500 to security guards to be allowed to extract gold ore for three days.
“Trouble started when the police were called and the businessman withdrew his ladder. People have been trapped without food in the shafts since Monday,” said an illegal miner who declined to be named.
“About 130 of an initial group of more than 300 people have come out using the mine’s lift. The others are hiding in the shafts fearing arrest.”
More than 50 armed police officers arrived at the mine at around 1pm to deal with the makorokoza.
A group of 13 local makorokoza were engaged to go down into the shaft to convince their counterparts to come out.
“Most of them have vowed not to come out. They are saying they would rather die in there than to come out and face arrest,” said an official.
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