2 Kitwe miners killed in blasting accident
By a Correspondent
TWO miners have died in an underground accident at Mopani Copper Mines’ SOB Shaft in Wusakile Township in Kitwe.
Copperbelt Province commissioner of police Mwala Yuyi said the accident happened on Tuesday in the late afternoon.
“The fatal incident occurred on Tuesday, January 13, 2025, at around 17:45 hours at SOB Shaft, level 3,760 in Wusakile,” he said.
Yuyi said the accident was reported to Wusakile Police Station by Mopani Copper Mines chief security manager Mukunda Miktaza on behalf of the company.
He said the victims were employees of Reliant Mines, a contractor operating at the mine.
In a statement, preliminary investigations indicate that three Reliant employees were working underground at around 06:00 hours when the person in charge went to test a blasting cable.
Yuyi said during the process, a loud explosion was heard and reported.
He said later in the evening, workers on the night shift discovered a hard hat, a gumboot and bloodstains on the walls and ground at the work site, prompting an emergency response.
“The victims have been identified as Josiah Silomba, aged 42, a blaster and person in charge, and Justin Mutaba, aged 50, a utility vehicle operator, both residents of Wusakile Township in Kitwe,” Yuyi said.
He said police officers, accompanied by scenes of crime personnel, rushed to the mine, where rescue operations were already underway.
The bodies of the victims were only recovered in the early hours of yesterday, around 03:45 hours after earlier attempts failed.
“That one body was found dismembered while the other was cut into two parts. The remains have been deposited at Kitwe Teaching Hospital mortuary pending postmortem examinations, with an inquiry file opened,” Yuyi said.
