Lily Mine families again call for bodies of their family members to be retrieved

JOHANNESBURG - Almost a decade later, the families of three miners that died in an accident at Lily Mine in Mpumalanga have again called for their bodies to be retrieved.

Wednesday marks exactly nine years since Pretty Nkambule, Yvonne Mnisi, and Solomon Nyirenda were trapped underground at the mine in Barberton when the site collapsed.

Their remains have never been recovered from the light room they were working in at the time, while close to 80 others were rescued through a ventilation shaft shortly after the collapse.

Every year on this day – the Nkambule, Mnisi and Nyirenda families gather at the Lily Mine site to commemorate the tragedy that claimed the lives of their loved ones.

Some family members and former mine workers continue to camp at the site in an act of protest and in a bid to draw attention to one of the worst accidents in recent mining history.

The families’ spokesperson Harry Mazibuko said this year was yet another reminder of the lack of accountability for the deaths and a lack of closure for the families still grieving.

“We are still unhappy that people have been left underground when all we want is for their remains to be recovered. We’re asking for help to bring back the remains of Pretty Nkambule, Yvonne Mnisi and Solomon Nyirenda.”

It was only at the end of 2023 that a court wrapped up an inquest to determine who should be held liable for the incident.

In that same judgement, the court officially ruled the three miners had died, a reality the families still refuse to accept without their remains.