A Tale of Two Tragedies
October 05, 23
It's been a tough few days. Last Friday an illegal gold mine collapsed in Zimbabwe, killing at least 10 people.
Then on Sunday a private plane collecting diamonds from the Murowa mine, also in Zimbabwe, crashed killing all six people on board. Among them were Indian mining billionaire Harpal Randhawa and his 22-year-old son Amer.
Fate respects neither wealth nor poverty. The two tragedies unfolded within a four-hour drive of each other - but in one key respect they were a million miles apart.
The miners who were buried alive at the disused Bay Horse gold deposit, in Chegutu, knew they were dicing with death.
They had little training or equipment, and no permission to be there. They took the risk to put food on the table.
Harpal Randhawa, owner of the RioZim mining company (diamonds, gold, coal and more) and founder of the $4bn private equity firm GEM Holdings, and his son Amer weren't taking a risk.
They never imagined that boarding a RioZim single-engine Cessna 206 at Harare would end the way it did.
Amer, a trained pilot (although he wasn't flying on this occasion) knew only too well that technical failure - the presumed reason for the crash - is always possible, but rarely happens.
The nearest and dearest of the victims in both tragedies will be mourning their loss. And no doubt hoping there will be no repeat.
But do we learn from our mistakes? In February 2019, the bodies of 24 workers were pulled from another gold mine, 40 miles from Chegutu, after tunnels became flooded and collapsed.
And in February of this year another light aircraft, also owned by RioZim, crash-landed in a field as it transported a parcel of rough gems under armed guard from Murowa. Nobody died, but the pilot suffered head injuries.
So the answer is no.
Last September the tailings dam burst at Jagersfontein, a former De Beers diamond mine in South Africa, killing three people as a river of gray sludge devastated everything in its path.
Two months later another tailings dam burst, this time at Petra's Williamson mine, in Tanzania, damaging homes and fields over a 5km area, but thankfully with no loss of life.
Again, the answer is no.
In recent days it was announced that criminal charges are to be brought against an equipment firm over the death of a worker at Gahcho Kue, the Canadian mine jointly owned by De Beers and Mountain Province. Not the first mining fatality, and not likely to be the last.
The diamond industry is currently facing challenges on all fronts. Markets are slow, morale is low and prospects may be gloomy.
But take a moment to reflect on those - both rich and poor - who are no longer here to face those challenges. And count your blessings.
Have a fabulous weekend.