Illegal mining puts Joburg on brink of disaster
World Cup stadium and other landmarks at risk as illegal miners tunnel under city close to fuel and gas pipes, raising danger of buildings collapsing and deadly explosions
Illegal miners have brought Johannesburg, SA's biggest city, to the brink of an unprecedented disaster - and the government has shrugged off calls by city officials to step in and avert potential catastrophe. Transnet and Sasol have sounded the alarm that zama zamas are blasting to within metres of highly flammable gas and fuel lines under Johannesburg. Should one of those lines be damaged, experts say, everything within a 300m radius will be "incinerated". Key parts of the city are also under threat of collapse due to the 140km labyrinth of new and existing tunnels that illegal miners are digging or blasting beneath the city. These include the M1 double-decker highway and the M2, sections of Soweto and the 94,000-seat FNB Stadium. If you are already a subscriber, please click on the following link below to go to the full article: SPECIAL REPORT | Underground tunnels have Joburg on shaky ground If you would like to subscribe to Sunday Times to read the full story, please click here<...
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