July 30, 1999
Web posted at: 12:14 p.m. EDT (1614 GMT)

In this story: Blast occurred as miners evacuated RELATED STORIES, SITES

From staff and wire reports

CARLETONVILLE, South Africa (CNN) -- A gas explosion in a South African gold mine killed at least 18 workers as they drilled a rock face, according to company officials on Friday.

A team of 20 rescue workers, trained to work with little ventilation and in the presence of noxious fumes or smoke, were looking for one miner who remained missing on Friday, said James Duncan, a spokesman for Anglogold, the world's largest gold producer.

"We will keep on going flat-out until we are satisfied everyone is accounted for," Duncan told the South African Press Association.

Twenty miners were lifted to safety after the explosion Thursday at the Mponeng mine, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) southeast of Johannesburg. They were taken to the hospital but all were released.

The emergency crew brought up 17 bodies Thursday evening from the shaft, more than 2,700 meters (9,000 feet) underground. They worked throughout the night before finding the 18th fatally injured miner before dawn.

"It makes me feel sad because were both working together," said miner Jason Mpufumadi.

The miners were lengthening an access tunnel to a working area when the gas, probably methane, ignited, said Duncan.

Blast occurred as miners evacuated

Part of the process of lengthening the tunnel is to drill long holes into virgin rock to check for pockets of gas or water. Duncan said the miners were following the correct procedures at the time of the blast.

"They detected methane, the alert was given and the evacuation was under way when the gas ignited," he said.

South African President Thabo Mbeki said Friday that he was shocked and saddened by the accident.

The blast was the worst mining disaster for Anglogold since 104 people were killed at the Vaal Reefs mine west of Johannesburg in 1995, when an underground lift plummeted into the mine.

Duncan said that the explosion area was localized and that mining would continue normally Friday in other shafts.

Johannesburg Bureau Chief Charlayne Hunter-Gault, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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