Landslide Traps Mineworkers Underground in Kimberly, Workers Unaccounted For

• Emergency services were on the scene at the Ekapa Mining Joint Shaft in Kimberley, Northern Cape, where workers are trapped almost one kilometre underground
• It is not clear what caused the mudslide, but authorities arrived at the mine and worked to extract the workers who were trapped underground
• The company reportedly issued a statement requesting that the families of the trapped miners be respected

For seven years, Tebogo Mokwena, Briefly News’ Deputy Head of Current Affairs, South Africa, covered a range of topics, including accidents, fires, outbreaks, nature, weather, and natural disaster-related incidents, at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

KIMBERLEY, NORTHERN CAPE — Five miners are said to be unaccounted for when a mudslide trapped them at 890 metres underground at the Ekapa Mining Joint Shaft in Kimberley, Northern Cape, on 17 February 2026.

According to IOL, the workers were trapped in Tunnel 6 after a mudslide. Emergency management services rushed to the scene in an attempt to rescue the workers who are still unaccounted for.

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According to DFA, Ekapa Minerals reportedly released a statement that revealed that the mine's emergency protocols were activated. A coordinated search and rescue operation was undertaken. The company's statement added that the Department of Mineral Resources and Petroleum had been notified. The families of those trapped underground have also been alerted. Ekapa also did not want to speculate on what caused the landfall but requested that the privacy of the workers and families be respected.

Similar mining collapses in South Africa

The mudslide at Ekapa Mine is not the only accident to occur in the Northern Cape in the past few years. Three illegal miners died, and 10 were trapped underground in the Nuttaboy Mine when the ground caved in in 2022. The 10 who were trapped were rescued, and a community leader called on the government to legalise diamond mining in the area. This would have allowed small-scale diamond miners in Namaland to work under proper conditions and regulations.

In the same year, four employees were killed at Harmony Gold's Kusasalethu Mine in Gauteng. The workers were part of a team that was tasked with cleaning the mud dam and repairing a pipe in the dam when a wall collapsed. The mine's management stated that the area was frequently maintained and was earlier declared safe by the team before they conducted the maintenance. South Africans were not impressed by the incident, and some blamed the mine.

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Relatives of Lily Mine victims demand answers

In another mining accident-related article, Briefly News reported that family members of the miners whose remains are still trapped underground in Lily Mine in Mpumalanga demanded answers. The bodies were trapped underground in 2016, and the families slammed the government after it granted Vantage Goldfields to resume operations in 2024.

Three miners were killed after they were trapped underground when a part of the mine collapsed. A spokesperson for the families, Harry Mazibuko, said that the family was battling with the government and the mine to retrieve the remains of their loved ones.

Source: Briefly News