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Sydney Kawadza Senior Features Writer
At the height of economic meltdown a few years ago, Herbert Ndlovu, who had just finished school, joined the great trek from his rural area in Gokwe (Kana) to look for a job in South Africa.
After doing menial jobs in Johannesburg, earning R50 per week amid fears that his family back home was not getting the money he had promised to send to his parents in Mapiya village, Ndlovu decided to join his “homeboys” who were engaged in illegal gold mining in some disused mines in Roodepoort.

The 22-year-old Ndlovu had been working in the abandoned Durban Deep Mine since 2011 but today, after retrieving 17 bodies of his colleagues who died from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning in the abandoned mine, he believes this is the time to return home.

More than 30 people are believed to have died when poisonous gases were emitted into the Durban Deep Mine on February 21 this year. Twenty-three Zimbabweans died in the accident at the abandoned gold mine while looking for the precious mineral.

Among the deceased identified were Nompilo Siziba, Kwanele Siziba, Ndumiso Siziba, Melusi Siziba, Mthandazo Ncube, Mehluli Ncube, Danisa Ncube, Carrison Mpofu, Brighton Mlambo, Khethani Mbiba, Tshepani Sibanda, Shepherd Mkandla and Brighton Moyo, from Chief Madliwa’s area in Nkayi District.

From Chief Makore’s area in Gokwe South came Dick Gumbi, Life Ndlovu, Edward Ncube and Nqobani Mlambo.

The late Ndodana Liberty Mathe and Caanan Dube came from Chief Siphoso’s area in Tsholotsho while Ndodana Mathe from Chief Nduku’s area in Kwekwe also died in the poisoning incident.

Godfrey Shava and Vecent Tshuma also perished in the abandoned mine.

All the victims were buried last weekend in funerals that left communities devastated with some families losing up to six members.

There are also fears that more bodies are still in the abandoned mine after South African authorities abandoned searches for more victims citing dangerous gas levels in the mine.

Speaking from Johannesburg ahead of the repatriation of bodies back home on Friday last week, Ndlovu said even though poverty led him to engage in illegal mining, he was coming back home to look for a safe and legal way of earning a living.

“I started illegal mining activities in 2011 and we would go into these mines almost on a daily basis where we would walk more than 30 kilometres underground in search of gold.

“However, on the fateful day I did not go down into the mine. When we were about to go down one of my colleagues came out saying he was feeling weak after inhaling some foul-smelling gas.”

Ndlovu said they started panicking after their colleagues who had been in the mine failed to return for three days.

“When our colleagues failed to surface after three days we decided to enter the mine to look for them because the survivor told us that everyone was feeling weak after inhaling the gas in the mine.

“I am not sure how my colleagues died or where the gas came from but when we got to our dead colleagues, their bodies were swollen and their skin was peeling off as we tried to carry them,” said an emotional Ndlovu.

Ndlovu carried 17 bodies of his colleagues during the operation to retrieve bodies from the abandoned mine.

“I was deeply pained by that experience because some of the bodies I carried out of the mine were relatives that I had known for the better part of my life.”

Ndlovu painted a gloomy picture of Zimbabweans who illegally cross the border into South Africa.

“When I came here I was looking for a better life but it was not to be because employers would take advantage of us and the money we earned was not enough to send back home.

“I decided to join my colleagues from home at the mine. More than 100 illegal miners were going into that mine every day. One would walk more than 40 kilometres underground and the distance also depended on where you expected to get the gold.

“It was not an easy job getting the gold and even when one got the precious metal, you would not get as much as you wanted because the mining was illegal and we had running battles with the police.

“We also had to pay bribes to the police and some ‘authorities’ for protection at the mines while most of us lost a lot because there was no way we could go to formal markets with our gold since it was from illegal activities from an abandoned mine.”

Herbert Ndlovu is part of Zimbabweans who were issued with gratis temporary travel documents to accompany five of his colleagues’ remains to Gokwe South for burial.
He declares that he will not go back to that mine.“After what I went through at that mine, the distance I travelled underground risking my life and the experience of carrying my friends’ dead bodies, I can’t go back.

“No-one knows how my colleagues died or where that gas came from and it also frightens me what could have happened if I had gone to work that day.

“I could have been a victim,” he said.

Ndlovu said he was taking the opportunity to come back to refocus.

“I hope Government will forgive us and assist us set up proper working places and I would also try to look for a formal job in Zimbabwe,” he said.

Another Zimbabwean who assisted in retrieving the bodies from the abandoned mine believes more bodies are still in the mine.

Nkulumane Ncume told The Chronicle after the burial on Sunday this week that South African authorities could seal the mine with some bodies still to be collected. “I wish there was a way to retrieve all the bodies but we were too weak and traumatised after retrieving our brothers.

“I therefore urge people with relatives in South Africa who are into illegal mining to check if they are alive because they were so many people that were left underground,” he said.

The accident was not the first to be recorded at the disused mine as two Zimbabweans were killed while five of their colleagues escaped around the same period at the mine in a suspected rock fall.

The two, Blessing Chaitwa (29) and Shelton Mpofu (24) were trapped in the mine, raising concern about illegal mining activities in South Africa.

In January this year, 40 illegal miners were rescued after being trapped at a mine shaft west of Johannesburg while in 2012, 20 illegal miners were buried alive after another rock fall at a closed gold mine in the eastern South African province of Gauteng.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe Consular-General in Johannesburg, Mr Godfrey Magwenzi, warned Zimbabweans of the dangers associated with illegal migration and mining activities.

Addressing South African-based Zimbabweans at the memorial service held at the Holy Trinity Catholic Cathedral in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, last week, Mr Magwenzi said it was not necessary for Zimbabweans to crawl under fences to get into South Africa.

“On behalf of Government and the whole nation we want to express our heartfelt condolences as we share the grief being experienced by the people who lost their colleagues and relatives.

“It is also prudent to highlight the dangers of engaging in illegal mining in abandoned and disused gold mines.

“These are some of the danger of illegal migration,” he said.

Mr Magwenzi said there was no need for Zimbabweans to engage in boarder-jumping as the Registrar-General’s office in Zimbabwe was working seven days a week to issue passports.

“It takes three weeks to process a passport and in some emergency cases not more than 48 hours but there are people who pay between R2 000 to R4 000 to the malaitshas for their children to crawl under the fence into South Africa exposing them to such dangers when passports are only US$50,” he said.