15 Miners Rescued After Shaft Collapse at Redwing Mine in Zimbabwe

Rescuers completed a successful operation on Sunday, extracting all 15 subsistence miners who were trapped in an underground shaft at Redwing mine in Zimbabwe. The incident occurred after a collapse on Thursday, 270 kilometres (167.77 miles) east of Harare, the nation’s capital, according to government spokesman Nick Mangwana.

The rescue operation faced challenges due to unstable ground conditions, delaying the retrieval of the miners, as highlighted by Metallon Gold, the owner of Redwing.

A heartening video shared on social media platform X by Mangwana captured the moment when the mud-covered workers emerged from the mine, greeted by a jubilant crowd at the site.

All’s well that ends well. pic.twitter.com/3tlXy9lTY4

— Nick Mangwana (@nickmangwana) January 8, 2024

Redwing mine had been operating informally, with subsistence miners carrying out unauthorised work since the mine underwent corporate rescue procedures in 2020, as noted by the company.

Mines Minister Soda Zhemu, present at the scene of the accident in Penhalonga, confirmed the success of the emergency operation in rescuing all 15 small-scale Zimbabwean gold miners. Zhemu reassured, “They are all okay and very conscious,” providing an update on their condition.

The Redwing gold mine, owned by Metallon Corp Ltd, witnessed the incident on January 5, located 275 kilometers (171 miles) east of Harare.

Notably, Zimbabwe produced 30.1 tons of gold in 2023, with 60% sourced from small-scale miners, according to Fidelity Gold Refinery, the country’s authorised buyer of the precious metal.