An underground blasting accident in a Brazilian gold mine on Friday killed two workers and left others hospitalised last week.
The blasting accident occurred at Leagold Mining Corporation‘s Fazenda mine. Leagold is a Vancouver based company.
The company said that the underground blasting accident occurred at 11:40 pm on the evening of February 28, 2019, involved five employees, two of whom suffered fatal injuries. The remaining three employees incurred minor injuries and have been released from the hospital.
Leagold CEO Neil Woodyer said in a statement “On behalf of the entire Leagold Board and management team I send sincere condolences to the families of the deceased and also our support for the injured workers. We are working with the authorities to fully understand the cause of the accident and a thorough investigation is underway. The area of the accident has been sealed off. We are providing full support to the families of the victims.”
Normal mining operations have resumed with the exception of the section of the underground mine where the blasting accident occurred.
In January, the Brumadinho tailings dam collapse at Brazil’s Vale SA killed hundreds of people. The disaster is driving an overhaul of Brazilian mining operations, particularly safety and environmental conditions.
Leagold manages two other mines in Brazil, including the RDM site in Minas Gerais state.
No further details are available at this stage.
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