Zimbabwe rescuers pull 24 bodies from flooded gold mine

Zimbabwean rescuers have pulled the bodies of at least 24 illegal goldminers out of flooded shafts, with up to 50 more miners still missing. 

Searchers have recovered 24 bodies from a mine in Zimbabwe that was flooded after heavy rains, trapping dozens of subsistence miners underground. 

Henrietta Rushwaya, leader of the country’s small-scale miners’ association, said on Sunday that 23 of the bodies have been identified since the disaster on Tuesday near Kadoma.

Eight people were rescued from the flooded tunnels, and all but one have been discharged from a hospital after treatment.

The government is continuing its search, saying up to 70 gold miners may have been trapped after a dam wall collapsed and water rushed into nearby mining tunnels.

Large groups of people using picks, shovels and hoes are commonly seen in Zimbabwe’s mineral-rich fields. The miners operate without regulation.

Illegal mining has become rampant in a country where many people are unemployed.

The accident occurred in Battlefields, 175km west of the capital on Tuesday night and has shone a light on the risks run by illegal goldminers, who last year contributed a large part of Zimbabwe’s record 33 tonne bullion output.

The government has declared the incident a disaster.

Rescuers briefly stopped operations due to rain. Anxious relatives and other miners have camped out at the mining site as they wait for news of their loved ones and colleagues, some expressing frustration at the lack of information they are getting.

My son is in there. I did not see him when they brought out the others. No one is saying anything, how are we supposed to know what is happening?, said Sekai Maziwisa, a 56-year-old mother of three.

Battlefields and surrounding areas are rich in gold deposits and popular with artisanal miners, known locally as “Makorokoza” or hustlers, who use picks and shovels and generator-powered water pumps.

The makeshift shafts and tunnels, dotted around a clearing some 8km from the main dirt road, can easily collapse in the rainy season when the ground is soft.