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General News of Tuesday, March 26, 2019
Source: Graphic.com.gh
2019-03-26
These companies reportedly killed 61 people in total through their mining activities.
The Shaanxi Mining Company Ghana Limited, located in Talensi in the Upper East region, was fined $ 40,000 after being convicted in an explosion that killed 16 people near its compound.
The sanctions were imposed on the company after investigations by the Inspection Division of the Minerals Commission found the liability of the company for various offenses that resulted in the accident occurred in its mining enclave .
The company was fined US $ 10,000 for storing explosives underground without the approval of the Chief Mining Inspector, in flagrant violation of Regulation 163 of the LI 2177.
In addition, Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited was fined $ 10,000 for failing to ensure that the blast safety code was approved by the Chief Mining Inspector and failed to record blasting. January 22, 2019 in the log of the shift supervisor, respectively.
The company was also fined $ 10,000 for appointing a supervisor who could not contact his patrol team in the language they had understood in accordance with Regulation 56 (3) of L.I 2182.
More sanctions
The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh, who announced the sanctions at a press conference in Accra on Tuesday, March 26, said the mining groups Yenyeya and Pubeortaaba were also convicted. a fine of $ 10,000 for ignoring the duration of the explosions in the community of Gbane. .
Mr. Asomah-Cheremmeh also ordered that Mr. Asibi Seidu, the foreman at the blast center, be immediately fired for leaving his position without authorization.
He also ordered Mr. Kwasi Appiah, a well-known minor in the Gbane community, to be severely punished for allowing illegal miners to use his pit dug in his complex to access Yenyeya's underground works. and Pubortaaba, resulting in the deaths.
"In addition, Emmanuel Osman and Akurugu Vanga, who blasted at the second level on January 22, 2019, are suspended without pay for three months for failure to properly badess the risks before blasting, in violation of the regulations. 175 of the LI 2177, "he said.
Main conclusions
Asomah-Cheremeh, representative of the Minerals Commission, said that the explosives used in blasting that led to the accident on January 22, 2019 have not been registered in the Shaanxi Explosives Registry. Mining Ghana.
In addition, he added that the mines inspector did not approve the safe work procedure for blasting the company, as required by law.
"In addition, the company's blasting personnel did not conduct a risk badessment prior to blasting, while the foreman who was to supervise the blasting operations in the basement due to the absence of the blast leader. the bottom team had left the crew unceremoniously, "he said.
Investigations revealed that the Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited, Yenyeya and Pubortaaba mining groups did not receive blast time notices in the Gbane community.
"No adequate warning was given before the explosion, which constitutes a flagrant violation of Regulation 193 (e) of the LI 2177. The pre-blast inspection was also inadequate, because some of the illegal miners would have hidden underground, but the inspection team did not detect their presence, "he said.
The instructions
As part of the investigators' recommendations, Mr. Asomah-Cheremeh gave a one-month ultimatum to the owners of the Yenyeya and Pubotaaba mining groups to appoint qualified people to oversee the activities of the service company. Shaanxi Ghana Mining Limited.
He also demanded that all illegal mining pits in the Gbane community linking the Yenyeya and Pubortaaba underground works be immediately closed to prevent any accident.
"All prospecting companies, namely Cbadius Mining, Savannah Mining Ghana Limited, Shanxi Mining and Mineral Processing Resources Ghana Limited, which have been allocated portfolios of mining areas blocked by Gbane-Datoko, should have a maximum of six months to carry out all their activities. negotiations on the transfer of licenses or any mining interests of artisbad miners, "he added.
He also said that no small-scale mining concession should be allowed to be in large-scale mining concessions.
Asomah-Cheremeh also asked Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited to immediately hire additional crew leaders and mining captains to oversee the company's operations by April 30 of this year.
Context
On January 23, 2019, about 16 miners died after an explosion in the mining concession of the Chinese company Shaanxi Mining Ltd. in the Far East region.
The tragedy occurred at dawn while workers of the Talensi district based company carried out an explosion of explosives in order to exploit them.
The mining concession belonged to the Shaanxi Mining Company, but the illegal miners tried to enter it by another way. Read more.
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