Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Mineral Resources is worried about the increasing number of mining accidents which it believes could possibly be caused by a lapse in safety measures.

The statement comes in the wake of an accident in Mpumalanga on Friday morning when a mine collapsed in the Nkomazi area trapping 79 miners. Seventy-six miners were rescued but three are still reported trapped at the Lily Mine.

 “Although we appreciate a swift rescue of most of those workers‚ we remain worried about the missing three. Our strong view is that accidents of this nature should not happen in the first place‚” said Mr Sahlulele Luzipo‚ chairperson of the portfolio committee.

 He said the accident reaffirmed the committee’s long-held belief that drastic measures in the form of legislation should be considered as in the case with road safety laws.

 Mr Luzipo added that it was unacceptable that ordinary workers‚ most of whom were Africans from destitute backgrounds‚ had to leave their families only to come back injured or dead.

 “Workers go to work in order to put bread on the table for their families and contribute to the growth of the economy‚ hence we do not expect them to come back dead or injured as if they had gone to the war.”

 He said the committee was concerned that while the industry was faced with looming job cuts due to low commodity prices and other related matters‚ there seemed to be “a competing challenge in the form of mine safety which is avoidable”.

 However‚ the committee acknowledged the speedy intervention by the Minister of Mineral Resources and would convene a meeting to engage with the minister and industry to hear what steps would be taken to ensure zero harm in the future.