Zuma sends condolences to families of Eskom workers

© Alexey Klementiev - Fotolia.com

"We mourn with the families of all the workers who have lost their lives in this tragedy, while constructing a better life not just for themselves and their families, but also for the entire country.

"We share their loss and their pain. It is painful to all of us. On behalf of government and the whole country, we wish to convey our deepest condolences to the families and fellow workers. May their souls rest in peace," said President Zuma.

He wished the nine injured workers a speedy recovery.

The Department of Mineral Resources has also extended its condolences to the families of the deceased.

Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba also expressed his sincere and profound condolences to the families of the workers who died.

Gigaba called on Eskom to leave no stone unturned to get to the cause of the incident and to ensure that any such possible accidents in future are averted.

The department's KZN principal inspector, along with other departmental inspectors, visited the site of the incident on Thursday. The department has initiated a comprehensive investigation to determine the cause of the accident, in line with provisions in the Mine Health and Safety Act.

Eskom also said it would launch a detailed investigation into the incident.

Ingula power station, the Eskom construction site near Ladysmith, is one of government's flagship infrastructure projects. It is a 1 332MW Pumped Storage Scheme that contributes significantly to job creation and economic growth of the town of Ladysmith and South Africa's infrastructure programme.

It is one of the three new power stations that are being constructed, which will bring a vast increase to the country's energy supply.