Tladi Moloi
People living near the diamond mine in Jagersfontein had long noticed cracks in the slimes dam wall.
It was an accident waiting to happen. And on Sunday morning, the dam wall collapsed.
Houses, cars, livestock … all were swept away in the floodwaters and mud, devastating the communities of Charlesville and Skhothi.
Two people have been confirmed dead and close to 40 taken to hospital.
Nomthandazo Michaels from Charlesville told Scrolla.Africa she was angry about what happened because residents have had several marches to the mine, asking the owners to vacate the place because it was dangerous.
“We have warned them and they never listen.
“I heard neighbours screaming that we should run. I came out of the house with my child and ran to the mountains,” she said.
The 46-year-old said her leg was still in pain as they had to help some elderly people out of their houses with wheelbarrows.
“A search for other people is still on since they couldn’t be located. We know some have died but we don’t know them yet,” she said.
A search and rescue operation was underway and a full report will be released once completed.
“A detailed report on the circumstances surrounding the incident will be released upon compilation,” said a statement from the office of the Free State premier.
Michaels is currently with other survivors at the Jacob Zuma Community Hall in Fauresmith.
Veronica Peterson, who lives in the Red Location near the mine, said they were still in shock. They were not going to sleep peacefully after the incident.
Peterson added that the mine has always posed a danger to the community but no one took it seriously.
“Apparently, that mine burst from the back a few years ago but they managed it and the owners kept quiet about it,” she alleged.
She said the mine dam had big visible cracks and they could tell that one day something bad would happen.
“At times we saw the employees working on the dam trying to fill up the cracks but still it was not enough. It is very sad that their ignorance has claimed the life of other people and left a number of the community members homeless.”
The office of the premier noted that all damage will be paid for by the mining company.
“Compensation for fatalities, compensation in terms of damage to property will be taken as a responsibility of the company that owns the slimes dam,” the statement added.
Sisi Nthombela, the premier of the Free State together with Mxolisi Dukwane MEC for the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and Montsheng Tshiu, MEC for Health visited Fauresmith to hand out food parcels and blankets to the displaced families.
“We are commiting to support and assist the affected families with all that we have. Our primary focus now is the well being of the residents, we will however meet with the mine in question to get an understanding of what might have gone wrong,” she said.
