Production has been halted at Northam Platinum's underground mine following the death of a worker.

The worker was killed on Tuesday in an accident at the facility around 1.6 km below the surface.

Marion Brower, spokesperson for Northam Platinum, told Reuters: "The worker was killed in a rockfall early on Tuesday and the mine has been shut. It was shut after the accident.

"We estimate a loss of 1,000 pgms a day," she added.

A statement from the company said that it had been told to suspend operations at the mine by the Inspector of Mines.

Ms Brower did not confirm when operations would be recommencing.

News of the incident comes after President Thabo Mbeki recently announced that a probe is to be launched into safety standards at mines in South Africa.

The fatality brings the death toll in South African mines to five in the last week.

Source:

Northam Platinum shuts mine after worker killed, 17/10/07

http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKL1711632720071017?pageNumber=2



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