Ill workers 'cleared for duty'. 21 August 2008. 'When medical specialists diagnosed at least 10 cases of manganese-specific illness at a Cato Ridge factory, the Assmang manganese company dumped them "like hot potatoes" and replaced them with a new team of doctors, which revised the diagnoses to suggest the sick workers might be alcoholics, drug abusers or Aids sufferers. All 10 workers had also been certified previously by the compensation commissioner as being permanently disabled because of manganism, an occupational disease caused by exposure to excessive levels of toxic manganese. Another 27 workers, also earmarked by doctors as possibly suffering from manganism, were also "cleared" by the new team of medical doctors and some were put back to work. This emerged on Wednesday during the testimony of Dr Susan Tager to the labour department inquiry into worker sickness and toxic dust exposure at the factory. Tager, a senior Johannesburg neurologist, heads the movement disorders clinic at Wits University and serves as an academic and medical director at the university. She expressed surprise that Dr Murray Coombs, a new member of the Assmang expert panel, had rubbished her diagnoses - although Coombs had not seen or physically examined any of the 10 workers and had based his opinion on a review of their medical files. Coombs, of Elixir Corporate Health Solutions, is employed by Assmang as an occupational health consultant. Tager said on Wednesday that she stood by her diagnoses and she did not think it was "advisable" for anyone - even a highly experienced clinician - to revise a diagnosis merely on the basis of reviewing a medical file. "I think this is something which should be cautioned against." Richard Spoor, an attorney representing several Assmang workers, asked Tager to comment on the ethical implications of Coombs's suggesting that workers might be suffering from alcohol and drug abuse, Aids, stress, arthritis, diabetes, liver disease, iron deficiency, carbon monoxide poisoning or idiopathic Parkinson's disease - but not manganism. "Dr Coombs is a general practitioner and to the best of my knowledge has no experience with manganism so, with respect, what are the ethical considerations of a junior colleague making such trenchant criticisms? He is saying that you acted in an unscientific manner and drew conclusions which were not possible to make. What are the ethics of that?" asked Spoor. Tager responded that she did not regard Coombs as "junior" to her. "But I would not be so bold in critically assessing his work in the field of occupational health." Spoor said he would like to know if Coombs's public criticism of her work was in accordance with the ethical standards and norms of the medical profession. Tager said doctors were often required to comment on the work of their colleagues, but she appeared to have become "a victim in the crossfire". "He has hurt my feelings, but he is entitled to his opinion." Tager responded to suggestions that she might have misdiagnosed some of the workers as having manganism, when they actually had Parkinson's disease, saying the majority of patients visiting her Wits University clinic suffered from Parkinson's and she was familiar with its symptoms.  Earlier, Tager said she had been requested to give a secondary opinion on the diagnoses of several Assmang employees and had also been invited to sit on a panel of experts to review several cases. The panel was set up because several medical experts felt there was an emerging manganism problem in South Africa. Inexplicably, however, in August 2007, she was excluded from conducting further medical examinations of Assmang patients, along with Cato Ridge practitioner Dr Johnny do Vale, Pietermaritzburg neurologist Dr Z Saccoor and Prof David Rees - some of whom are understood to have been part of the first medical assessment team. Tager was mystified by their exclusion. Spoor said he had been informed that some patients earmarked in medical tests as "possibly" having manganism had been told to return to work. Tager said she believed it was unethical to send such a patient back to work and be exposed to further manganese toxins. Coombs, who testified earlier in the inquiry, also attended yesterday's hearing as an observer - sparking objections from Spoor, who said his presence during Tager's testimony was "undesirable" and could influence his later testimony. However, inquiry chairperson Vuli Sibisi ruled that Coombs could stay.

Assmang employee brain damaged - expert. IOL of 21 August 2008. 'There was evidence of "unequivocal brain damage" to a man who was fit and healthy when he started working at a ferromanganese smelter near Durban in 1994, a labour department inquiry heard on Thursday. The inquiry is investigating several cases of manganese poisoning. Dr Rosemary Mason, the psychiatrist who examined an Assmang employee, said: "There is unequivocal evidence of brain damage in Mr Haarhof. "There is no need to examine him again to confirm whether he suffers from Parkinson's syndrome. That has already been clearly demonstrated," she said - when asked if another opinion would be reached on the condition of Joshua Haarhof, an Assmang foreman who started working at the plant in 1994. The inquiry heard that Haarhof, who gave permission for his personal medical records to be revealed at the hearing "suffers from irreversible Parkinson's syndrome due to manganism". She pointed out that there was a difference between Parkinson's disease and Parkinson's syndrome, which can be caused by numerous factors including manganism. Mason, who is still treating Haarhof, told the inquiry that she had submitted her report to the Compensation Commissioner. It was revealed that Haarhof had been seen by a number of specialists, including a neurologist. She told the inquiry that she used the evidence from the previous specialists as well as her own expertise to reach her diagnosis. "His brain damage is now fixed and incurable. After 15 months away from his (work) environment he has shown no improvement." She said Haarhof had told her that when he started working at the company he had no knowledge of the damage caused by exposure to manganese dust. He stopped working in 2007. Mason said he had to use all his powers to focus on walking and that he could not even carry a small parcel while walking.

 

Workers had to 'ask' for masks. News24 of 29 May 2008. 'Cato Ridge - Paper masks were only available to workers at a ferromanganese smelter if they asked for them, a labour department inquiry investigating several cases of manganese poisoning heard on Thursday. Bernard Randolph, a labour inspector who visited the Assmang ferromanganese smelter in Cato Ridge near Durban in 2006, said that interviews with five employees afflicted with manganism and three workers in the smelter had revealed that workers were not provided with protective gear or training in using protective gear. He said the same workers told him that they were not obliged to wear masks in the plant. On his first visit to the smelter he said he questioned three workers as to why they were not wearing masks. "They replied that it was not necessary and 'it's up to us [the workers] whether we decide to wear them or not.'" They then told him that they would receive paper masks if they requested them. "This completely surprised me because of the circumstances in which they were working," said Randolph. The hearings form part of an investigation launched by the Labour Department in November 2006 when five workers were reported to be suffering from manganese poisoning. Manganism is acquired by overexposure to airborne manganese and is a disease that affects the sufferer's central nervous system. The disease leaves sufferers with symptoms very similar to Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS). The company on Monday said in a statement that it did not believe that any of its workers suffered from manganism. Randolph said the different perception between management and workers on the extent of ventilation, training and the provision of respiration equipment was striking. He said he had interviewed five workers who had been told by doctors that they had manganism. "It is quite clear from the interviews that the people [the workers] were sick," he said. He said that one of the sick workers had told him that he wore his paper mask "on and off" and that management did not enforce the wearing of masks. "It should be clear to this inquiry that the workers were not trained [to uses respiratory equipment]," said Randolph. Randolph presented photographs at the hearing, however Willem le Roux, the attorney representing Assmang objected. He said that Randolph was not "trained to accurately assess photographs." Randolph had taken the photographs during his visit to the smelter. However, Vuli Sibisi, who heads the inquiry, said he would accept the images and Randolph's testimony regarding the images. He said that should a case appear before the courts, a judge could then rule whether one was qualified to interpret the photographs he took. Describing his ninth photo before the inquiry, Randolph said that an employee could not be seen in the picture because "the dust is so dense that the tapper's assistant cannot be seen from a distance of six metres away".

Assmang workers want bosses to pay. SABC of 29 May 2008. 'Victims of manganese poisoning at the Assmang smelter in Cato Ridge want company bosses to face the full might of the law. They were giving testimony at the Department of Labour's inquiry into reported cases of manganese poisoning at the factory. The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) says Assmang clearly compromised the safety of its workers. But company officials deny this. Ten cases of manganese have already been confirmed while more than 50 are still being investigated. Doctors say two men were left permanently disabled after continuous exposure to high levels of manganese dust. Workers who have worked for the company for more than 30 years are affected badly. They cannot stand properly and also suffer from severe memory loss. Numsa has told the inquest that Assmang managers should be accountable for this. Now Numsa says their life expectancy has been reduced by employers who failed to inform them that they sitting on a time bomb. Jan Steenkamp from Assmang says these workers have been incorrectly diagnosed. He says those who were confirmed to suffer from manganese poisoning by the Compensation Commission have refused to be re-examined. Steenkamp says the company is therefore considering its options. Manganism is acquired through the inhalation of air with high levels of manganese dust. It then destroys the central nervous system. This leads to severe memory loss, a lack of balance and even impotence. The victims called on the government to act swiftly to save those who are not yet affected.

Assmang denies claims that Cato Ridge workers suffer from manganism. Mining News of 27 May 2008. 'Ferromanganese producer Assmang said on Monday that it did not believe that any of its workers at its Cato Ridge smelter were suffering from manganism. The company said that its opinion was based on expert medical diagnoses, and that it would consider a number of options in this regard. This follows an ongoing Department of Labour inquiry into exposure of its workers to toxic manganese fumes and dust at its Durban smelter. The investigation was launched in November 2006, after it was reported that workers were suffering from manganese poisoning. The company told the Department of Labour that it disputed the initial diagnoses, as it had arranged for new medical examinations to be conducted last week, but that the seven employees, and an eighth individual who had been employed by a contractor, had refused to attend the examinations. The eight individuals were part of a group of ten that were previously diagnosed with manganism. Assmang no longer employed two of the original ten individuals. Assmang stated it had previously accepted the original manganism diagnoses at face value, but on later medical advice the company disputed the original diagnoses and the manner in which the incidents had been reported to the compensation commissioner. The producer said the employees contended that they were 100% disabled and could not work, and had refused to attend medical examinations that would enable the company to determine exactly what could be wrong with them. The company said it had, in February this year, presented the Department of Labour, which was conducting an inquiry into manganism at the smelter, with evidence that the ten individuals did not actually have manganism. "Assmang cannot go into further detail on these matters, in the absence of medical consents being forthcoming from the persons concerned," the company said in the statement. Assmang added that it had on a number of occasions asked for these consents to be provided, but the persons concerned had refused to do so. Sapa had reported in April that the smelter had been warned for 11 years by an occupational hygienist that workers' exposure to manganese dust was too high. The Department of Labour inquiry was investigating 40 alleged cases of manganism that had resulted from workers breathing in fumes containing airborne manganese particles at the Assmang ferromanganese smelter.

Assmang manganism victims fear dismissal. Busrep of 27 May 2008. 'Durban - Assmang workers who are disabled by manganism are as hopeless as they were before the beginning of the public inquiry that started 18 months ago into the circumstances surrounding their exposure to manganese dust. This is because the firm has threatened to fire seven of the 10 employees who were confirmed to be suffering from manganism if they continue to refuse to be retested by the latest team of doctors hired by the ferromanganese smelter. Two of these workers are not working anymore, but they receive extra benefits from the company, which pays for their medical expenses. They may lose those benefits if they continue to defy the firm's instructions to be re-examined. Brian Anderson is one of those employees. The company pays about R800 for his monthly medication. He has to consult a psychologist and a psychiatrist every month. "If they [the company] stop paying for all this, I will be denied proper medical care and I will be put up in a mental institution," said Anderson. He said he had refused to be examined again because he did not have the strength for any more tests. "I have seen five specialists already and I am not going to see any more," he said. "I am not trying to get into the Guinness World Records for seeing a lot of specialists. The only doctor I will see now is the one who will treat me and not anybody else."  Mbuyiselwa Ngcobo, who is partially blind, might also lose his benefits. He can hardly speak any more, and his son Caiphus speaks on his behalf. Ngcobo worked at Assmang for 32 years before being forced to stop in 2006 because he was too ill. According to his son, he cannot dress himself any more, he is always sleeping and his memory is poor. His son said the family was not aware that the company was planning to take away the extra money paid to his father. "Things would be difficult at home because there are eight of us, but only three are working,'' he said. ''We just want them [Assmang] to pay him compensation because they are the reason he is ill." The company said it wanted the workers to be re-examined because it did not believe they were properly diagnosed. When asked about the threats from Assmang, the labour department said this was out of its jurisdiction, adding that it would not disrupt the inquiry. Zolisa Sigabi, the spokesperson for the department of labour, said the department would wrap up its inquiry next month and would scrutinise the information for two weeks before making recommendations to the national director of public prosecutions.

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Manganese inquiry resumes. IOL of 23 May 2008. 'A department of labour inquiry into exposure of workers to toxic manganese fumes and dust at the Assmang ferromanganese smelter near Durban will resume on Monday. Labour spokesperson Zolisa Sigabi on Thursday said the inquiry would resume at the Cato Ridge Country Club about 40 kilometres from Durban on Monday and would continue for the rest of the week. "A series of approved inspection authorities are in the line-up to make presentations on the company's state of occupational hygiene and safety -based on reports tabled on various risk assessments already conducted at the plant." In April, the inquiry heard testimony that Harold Gayze, an occupational hygienist, whose firm Occutech had assessed risk at the firm's smelter, had warned the company about the risks of manganese dust for 11 years. The hearings form part of an investigation launched by the Labour Department in November 2006 when five workers were reported to be suffering from manganese poisoning. Manganism is acquired by overexposure to airborne manganese and is a disease that affects the sufferer's central nervous system, leaving them with symptoms very similar to Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS)

Assmang liable for charges over fatal explosion. Busrep of 25 April 2008. 'Assmang could face criminal charges over the February blast that killed six people. Yesterday the department of labour said the ferromanganese smelter would be subjected to another inquiry that would be part of the investigation into the furnace explosion. Evidence collated during the inquiry will be sent to the national director of public prosecutions who will decide whether to prosecute.  The evidence will include an e-mailed letter sent to Assmang by pyrometallurgical consulting experts Tenova Pyromet warning of the dangers of furnace six, and advising that it be switched off immediately, two days before the tragic incident. The department said it was aware of the e-mail and its contents, which were published by the media for the first time yesterday, but would not say when it was brought to its attention. Jan Steenkamp, an executive director at Assmang, said the issues raised in the Pyromet report were not related to the blast. "Our operational people received the e-mail and did an assessment which found that the cracks in the walls pointed out by Pyromet were not a short-term risk. They decided that maintenance would be done on Tuesday [two days after the blast]," said Steenkamp.  Mziwakhe Hlangani, the spokesperson for the National Union of Mineworkers, said it had asked the department to support its recommendation that Assmang's chief executive, Bryan Broekman, be held personally liable and be prosecuted for the incident. But the department said it had not received the request. Tlali Tlali, the spokesperson for the national prosecuting authority, said any decision to prosecute was based on the availability of evidence, which had to be admissible in court. Hlangani said that the union also wanted heads to roll at the company. "We have heard Patrice Motsepe [African Rainbow Minerals chairman] speaking and condemning the company. But we want action now, we want him to change management because it is clear that the present one has failed," said Hlangani. Assmang is jointly-owned by African Rainbow Minerals and Assore. Motsepe could not be reached for comment yesterday. Assmang is also the subject of a public inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the exposure of its workers to excessive levels of poisonous manganese dust, causing them to suffer from manganism. 

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‘Assmang failed to react immediately to warning about Cato Ridge furnace’. Mining News of 2 May 2008. 'Assmang, the ferromanganese smelter in Cato Ridge, KwaZulu-Natal, where six workers were killed on February 24 and a further two injured, failed to react immediately to an urgent warning from Tenova Pyromet, which designs and builds furnaces, to examine a problematic furnace, which exploded three days later. Tenova Pyromet marketing and sales engineer Mark Giese confirmed last week that a letter had been sent to Assmang but said he could not divulge details as it was now the company’s property. However, Jan Steenkamp, an executive direc- tor of Assmang and the company’s spokesperson, said Pyromet had been commissioned to investigate furnace Number Six, which was experiencing a problem with an electrode, and that an email had been received pointing out that there was a crack on the mantle on Electrode Two, which needed urgent attention because, if the mantle should fall into the furnace, it could result in an explosion. “Our guys on site did a risk assessment and concluded that there was no immediate danger, so we decided to close the furnace on Tuesday for normal maintenance,” he said.The furnace exploded two days earlier. Steenkamp said furnaces were inspected on a daily basis and, as far as the company was concerned, the explosion was not related to the faulty electrode. “However, an independent specialist has been commissioned from the University of Cape Town and we are waiting for the results of his finding,” he said. National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa national occupational health and safety coordinator Puleng Mminele said the warning should have been heeded, as the letter was written by a qualified person and the accident could have been avoided. Richard Spoor, the attorney acting on behalf of the Assmang workers, said another explosion had subsequently occurred at furnace Number Two, after the workers had warned that it posed a risk, but were told to continue working. Steenkamp confirmed that a further two small blowouts had occurred at furnaces Number Two and Number Three, but said he was not aware of any warning being given. “There were no injuries and the company is currently replacing the refractories,” he said. “You have to ask yourself whether this company has the skills and capacity to monitor the safe operation of these furnaces,” Spoor said. “Even if it cares about its workers, does it have people with the skills and experience to make the right decisions?” Meanwhile, the Department of Labour inquiry into possible manganese poisoning at the smelter in Cato Ridge resumed last week. The inquiry started in November 2006. The company is being investigated because 37 of its employees have shown signs and symptoms of manganism, a condition similar to Parkinson’s disease, which attacks the central nervous system. Ten of these have been positively identified with the disease. However, the company is disputing that any of its employees are suffering from manganism and is taking steps to have the ten workers previously diagnosed with manganism re-examined. Harold Gayze, the managing member of Occutech, an occupational hygienist company contracted by Assmang’s safety department from 1994 to 2003 to assess the conditions at the plant and make recommendations, said he had warned the company more than ten years ago that it ran the risk of prosecution because of the high levels of toxic dust at its Cato Ridge smelter. Under cross examination, Assmang’s attorney, Willem le Roux, suggested that some of the samples may have been confused, but Gayze refuted this, saying audits had been performed on the laboratories. Le Roux also claimed that a 5-µm filter should have been used for sampling rather than a 0,8-mm filter in order to comply with the ISO 7300 standard, but Gayze said this would not have captured any particle less than 5-µm. Gayze also claimed that he had complied with ISO requirements by stating the size of the filter used. “The results clearly indicated that there was a massive dust problem,” he said. He also claimed that most of the respirators issued to workers were nothing more than dust masks. Gayze said the contract with Assmang also stipulated the number of samples the company would pay for to have analysed and that Occutech was not prepared to analyse samples for which it would not be paid. “Only if the client recommends other samples will we [do them],” he said. Assmang has committed R280-million towards environmental improvements to reduce air and water pollution, R168-million of which has already been spent. Manganese is mined in the Northern Cape. The Assmang smelter is owned in equal shares by African Rainbow Minerals and Assore, both JSE-listed companies.

Factory ordered to shut furnace. IOL of 23 April 2008. ' Labour inspectors have ordered the shutdown of one of the furnaces at the Assmang ferromanganese smelter at Cato Ridge after molten metal leaked through a hole in the furnace wall, the Department of Labour said on Wednesday. In a statement, the department said the plant was inspected on Saturday and finger-sized burn-through of the wall of furnace number two occurred causing slag and molten metal to seep through the hole. The order to shut down the furnace was issued on Tuesday. This comes just over a week after lifting the ban on four furnaces at the plant after six people died of exposure to poisonous fumes. "The furnace had since been switched off by a supervisor with repair work currently underway. A prohibition notice served on the company has effectively halted all operations of the furnace until investigations are finalised," the department said. The notice would only be lifted when the furnace was declared safe to operate by an expert and a report was received by the department indicating the cause of the incident as well as preventative measures to be put in place. "Fortunately, there were no injuries." In a separate incident, inspectors also discovered that a worker had minor burns to the chest last Thursday while working at Furnace 3. The department said the furnace assistant was tapping metal when a spark was emitted hitting him on the chest. The injured worker received first aid treatment and returned to work the next day. Meanwhile, the manganese poisoning inquiry taking place at the Cato Ridge Country Club has been adjourned until Thursday.

Assmang back in hot seat for safety violations. Busrep of 20 April 2008. 'Ferromanganese smelter Assmang will be in the spotlight once again this week. The public inquiry into the exposure of the company's workers to high levels of manganese dust resumes at Cato Ridge country club tomorrow. The hearings began last year after the department of environmental affairs and tourism investigated five workers believed to be suffering from manganism. The last sitting, which attracted much attention, was two months ago. Although 10 people had been diagnosed, unions and the workers have said that there were at least 50 people who showed signs of manganism. Assmang is jointly owned by African Rainbow Minerals and Assore. Recently its safety standards and compliance with environmental legislation have been questioned. A day before the last hearing six people were killed when a furnace exploded at Cato Ridge Works. Prohibition notices were served on all six furnaces, with four being lifted last week. The department has halted the firm's plans to expand the plant by suspending the environmental impact assessment for the commissioning of two new furnaces that would have cost more than R1 billion. As a reaction to the furnace explosion, workers protested on the first day of the previous hearings. Mziwakhe Hlangani, a spokesperson for the National Union of Mineworkers, said on Friday that no protests were planned for this week. "Our lawyer [Richard Spoor] will recall company chief executive Bryan Broekman back to the stand because he must be cross examined again. There are quite a few issues from his statement that will be touched on and we will expose the firm," Hlangani said. Broekman had read out a statement saying the company did not believe any of the workers suffered from manganism. This was further backed up by Assmang's occupational health practitioner, Murray Coombs, who said it was possible that the 10 workers said to be suffering from the crippling condition were not diagnosed properly by other doctors. Coombs said that some of the miners' symptoms could be related to anything from HIV/Aids, to stress, arthritis, alcohol and drug abuse, dementia, the side effects of medicine, head injuries, poisoning from carbon monoxide or copper, absorbing too much or too little iron, liver disease, diabetes or genetic factors that caused bodies to absorb manganese faster than other people. Spoor could not be reached for comment on Friday.

Assmang decision waits on new report. Busrep of 18 March 2008. 'The department of labour's investigation into the blast that killed six Assmang workers last month has been delayed after a wrangle over access to information between the company and an independent expert. Nick Henwood, the director of the University of Cape Town's Industrial Health Resource Group who was selected by the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) to complete an independent report, was prevented from accessing data and personnel at Assmang's ferromanganese operations at Cato Ridge. Assmang's own independent expert report, compiled by Oasis Consulting and submitted to the department last week, blames a water leak for the explosion. Numsa spokesperson Mziwakhe Hlangani said Henwood was denied access to electronic data and barred from interviewing anyone on company premises. The data included graphs on the roof pressure of the furnace that exploded. Following Numsa's intervention, obstructions to Henwood's investigation were removed about a week ago and he is due to start his investigation today. Apart from technical issues, he will probe the culture of management, decision making and health and safety issues. Assmang executive director Jan Steenkamp denied that the company had hampered the probe. He said Numsa had requested a wider investigation than the "very specific" content of the department of labour's prohibition orders that shut down the plant after the blast. "He [Henwood] came onto the site … and was given a clear understanding of his role. Obviously we will not allow people to do what they like," said Steenkamp. The notices would be revoked only once inspectors had examined both of the reports and were satisfied about risk assessment and safety measures, said the department's spokesperson, Zolisa Sigabi. Steenkamp believed Numsa's report would be ready by Wednesday but Hlangani said this was doubtful. According to Steenkamp, the plant closure would reduce group revenue by between R400 million and R500 million, and operating profit by between R150 million and R200 million. These figures exclude repair costs, which include up to R20 million for protection walls that the group now plans to build around its furnaces. The losses would cut into the 2008/09 financial year, which starts in July. Steenkamp said that if the prohibition orders were lifted and production resumed in the first week of next month, Assmang would operate at full capacity only by the end of August.

Explosion at Assmang smelter caused by water. SABC of 17 March 2008. 'Water which leaked into a furnace at Assmang's ferromanganese smelter at Cato Ridge has been singled out as the main cause of the explosion which killed six people. The Department of Labour is in possession of an expert report into the cause of the blast three weeks ago. The plant was shut down after the incident. The report also found that the workers who were killed were in the control room at the time of the blast. To ensure the safety of workers, the report recommends that workers are moved from the control room to another location and that re-inforced blast walls are constructed. Chief Executive of African Rainbow Minerals' iron ore unit, Jan Steenkamp, says they hope to resume production by next month. But the National Union of SA Metalworkers (NUMSA) has questioned this saying their own expert report into the reasons for the blast will be finalised only next week. The Department of Labour will study both reports and safety recommendations before a decision is made on lifting the prohibition notices. The incident is to be further probed during an informal inquiry.

Assmang decision waits on new report. Busrep of 17 March 2008. 'The department of labour's investigation into the blast that killed six Assmang workers last month has been delayed after a wrangle over access to information between the company and an independent expert. Nick Henwood, the director of the University of Cape Town's Industrial Health Resource Group who was selected by the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) to complete an independent report, was prevented from accessing data and personnel at Assmang's ferromanganese operations at Cato Ridge. Assmang's own independent expert report, compiled by Oasis Consulting and submitted to the department last week, blames a water leak for the explosion. Numsa spokesperson Mziwakhe Hlangani said Henwood was denied access to electronic data and barred from interviewing anyone on company premises. The data included graphs on the roof pressure of the furnace that exploded. Following Numsa's intervention, obstructions to Henwood's investigation were removed about a week ago and he is due to start his investigation today. Apart from technical issues, he will probe the culture of management, decision making and health and safety issues. Assmang executive director Jan Steenkamp denied that the company had hampered the probe. He said Numsa had requested a wider investigation than the "very specific" content of the department of labour's prohibition orders that shut down the plant after the blast. "He [Henwood] came onto the site … and was given a clear understanding of his role. Obviously we will not allow people to do what they like," said Steenkamp. The notices would be revoked only once inspectors had examined both of the reports and were satisfied about risk assessment and safety measures, said the department's spokesperson, Zolisa Sigabi. Steenkamp believed Numsa's report would be ready by Wednesday but Hlangani said this was doubtful. According to Steenkamp, the plant closure would reduce group revenue by between R400 million and R500 million, and operating profit by between R150 million and R200 million. These figures exclude repair costs, which include up to R20 million for protection walls that the group now plans to build around its furnaces. The losses would cut into the 2008/09 financial year, which starts in July. Steenkamp said that if the prohibition orders were lifted and production resumed in the first week of next month, Assmang would operate at full capacity only by the end of August.

Union conducted own investigation into Assmang blast. Mining News of 13 March 2008. 'The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) said on Wednesday that the efforts of the expert it had appointed to investigate the blast at Assmang's Cato Ridge works had been hampered. Numsa spokesperson Mziwakhe Hlangani explained that University of Cape Town's industrial health resource group expert Nick Haywood had been at the Cato Ridge plant two day's after the blast, which occurred on February 26, to begin investigations, but that he had encountered difficulties with gaining access to information and permission to interview staff at the workplace. However, Hlangani did acknowledge that this issue had now been resolved and the union's investigation had proceeded. He reiterated that Numsa would not accept the findings of Assmang's independent investigation until the union had its own information to corroborate with the company's report and the safety recommendations it contained. "Numsa is also bewildered by the company announcement that it was ready to resume operations at the end of the month after the Labour Ministry issued prohibition notices to shut down the furnaces until proper investigations were completed. We will mobilise to ensure the furnaces are not re-opened until there is certainty about the safety of our members in the workplace," it said in a statement.

Manganese probe to continue in April. Mining News of 3 March 2008. 'A Labour Department inquiry into exposure of workers to poisonous fumes which resulted in about 40 alleged cases of manganism will resume again in April, the department said. Department spokeswoman Zolisa Sigabi said the inquiry would resume again at the Cato Ridge Country Club on April 21 for five days, and again on May 26 for a further five days. Sigabi said Vuli Sibisi, the labour department official heading the inquiry, regarded the inquiry's latest session as a success. "Labour inspectors have lined up a series of inspections, advocacy campaigns and investigations targeted at the Cato Ridge plant as part of the department's resolve to get to the root cause of the incidents that continue to plague the Assmang plant." Last Sunday, the hearings were overshadowed by an explosion at the plant's number 6 furnace, which has so far claimed the lives of six people. Four people are still in hospital recovering from their injuries and the plant was shut down. Sigabi said: "Contrary to recent media reports, operations at the ill-fated Durban's Assmang plant will remain forbidden until the conditions guaranteed the government of workers' safety." A second inquiry has been set up to determine the exact cause of the explosion. Sigabi denied media reports that investigating officials were "considering revoking the notice prohibiting the use of six furnace that caused the blast. The outcome of the inspectors' reassessment exercise should not be pre-empted. "We are not revoking the prohibition notice. Not before our inspectors are invited to the plant and verify the independent experts' risk assessment report. "Only when they are satisfied that all safety measures have been met and conditions are safe will the prohibition notice be revoked," she said.

None of ten suffering from manganism, says Assmang. Mining News of 7 March 2008. 'Assmang, one of the country's two largest manganese producers, is disputing that any of its employees is suffering from manganism, a condition resembling Parkinson's disease. Bryan Broekman, CEO of the company's Cato Ridge works, said at a Labour Department inquiry last week that in terms of a "revised and more comprehensive" medical surveillance programme developed last year, 27 of its employees showing possible signs and symptoms of manganism were examined by a movement disorder specialist and a neuro-psychologist who concluded that they did not have the disease. "In view of this development, Assmang requested medical re-examinations of the ten employees who were initially diagnosed with the condition under the previous medical surveillance programme," he said. "The re-examinations were originally scheduled for February 13 and 14, but did not take place on those dates as the two leading specialists involved indicated that they were no longer willing to proceed with the re-examinations." The company then commissioned two reviews of the files of the employees diagnosed with manganism. The first review was undertaken by Assmang's occupational health practitioner, Dr Murray Coombs and the second by Dr Warren Olanow, a movement disorder specialist of the Department of Neurology and Professor of the Department of Neuroscience, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York. "Both the reviews concluded that, on the evidence available, none of the 10 persons originally diagnosed with manganism can be diagnosed as having the disease," Broekman said. "In the circumstances, Assmang is taking steps to have the 10 persons previously diagnosed with manganism re-examined by appropriate experts so that their diagnoses may be verified." Broekman pointed out that the Compensation Commissioner had rejected the applications of two of the 10 employees diagnosed with manganism because he was not satisfied that their condition was related to their work environment. However, later in the week, Broekman and Coombs acknowledged that six of the 27 were still being investigated. Richard Spoor, the attorney representing the workers, said "a number" of the 27 had been confirmed to be suffering from manganism by Greys Hospital in Pietermaritzburg. "We have no confidence in the system set up by Assmang because the unions have been excluded and we have been refused access to their diagnostic protocol," he said. "We wanted a doctor representing the workers to sit on the panel reviewing the cases but Assmang refused, making the process unilateral. Their method is flawed because it is not transparent and is driven by an agenda." He said the 10 diagnosed cases of manganism had been confirmed by teams of specialists and that the company had only submitted half the information on two of its employees to the Compensation Commissioner. "We are expecting a review of his decision imminently," Spoor said. He accused Assmang of "assuming the role of God" by claiming that the original diagnoses were incorrect because they didn't follow the company's methodology, which was something that had been "cooked up by a company patently hostile to workers". Spoor claimed that the workers had only agreed to be re-examined after they had been sent letters by the company threatening to dismiss them or terminate their benefits if they didn't toe the line. "It was inconceivable that health professionals would participate in this type of action and they therefore withdrew from the process," he said. "However, this hasn't deterred the company, which is putting together a new panel." Spoor claimed Dr Olanow was employed "quite extensively" in the US steel industry to "rubbish research" suggesting that lower exposure levels should be implemented. "There are therefore some serious questions about his impartiality," he said. "However, the company's solution to the problem is to cast doubt on the diagnosis, which is very prejudicial to the workers, who would lose their compensation pensions." Broekman said that if cases of manganism were indeed occurring at its Works, then the recommended occupational exposure limit of 5mg of manganese for every cubic metre of air breathed by workers might be too high and should be reviewed by the Department of Labour in conjunction with industry. While occupation exposure levels at the Cato Ridge Works were less than 5 mg per cubic metre in all cases and in most cases were less than 1 mg per cubic metre, he pointed out that a lot of industries would be forced to close if they had to reduce their manganese exposure levels to 2 mg. "South Africa has 80 percent of the world's manganese reserves," he said. "It would be very sad if a lot of jobs were lost because a level was set that didn't allow the industry to develop to its potential. "The Department of Labour needs to set something practical and reasonable that will keep industry going and workers safe," he said. In his cross-examination of Broekman, Spoor suggested that Broekman was recommending a balance between workers' health and the viability of companies. "It's a trade-off between the health and safety of workers and the cost of remedial measures," he claimed. Broekman noted that in the past 12 years, Assmang had spent, in current terms, more than R200 million in remedial actions. "Assmang also has board approval for projects totalling a further R150 million," he said. However, Edgar Waller, an industrial hygienist, said in his evidence that when he first visited the plant in 2003 he had recommended the installation of a local exhaust ventilation on the crushers and furnaces and the introduction of a medical surveillance programme and a dust monitoring programme. "These measures are still not in place," he said. "Very high levels of dust have been found at the Works," Spoor said. "It is a filthy place."

Blast-hit Assmang plant likely to only restart by month-end. Mining News of 5 March 2008. 'Assmang's ferromanganese smelters at its Cato Ridge works, which were closed ten days ago owing to a blast that killed six people, remained out of operation, African Rainbow Minerals ferrous CE Jan Steenkamp confirmed on Wednesday. He explained that a report, following an investigation into the explosion, was only received on Friday, and that the company engaged with independent specialists on the findings contained in the report on Monday and Tuesday. Assmang would now meet with the Department of Labour (DoL) on Thursday in order to develop an action plan that would address all the necessary safety issues and pave the way for production to restart. The report showed that most of those killed during the incident were in the control room and therefore one of its recommendations was that those people needed to be moved to another location, which, Steenkamp noted, might create a need for new buildings. Another recommendation included the need for blast walls in the works. Steenkamp said that he did not expect production to restart at the Cato Ridge works before the end of March, and that the timing of the works returning to operation was reliant on two critical factors, namely the DoL accepting the action plan and the labour force feeling safe enough to return to work. Apart from the blast, the Cato Ridge works had also been under the microscope recently with the reconvening of the inquiry into the cases mangansim, which said to be caused by exposure to high levels of manganese dust at the Durban operation. The DoL's chairperson was expected to reach a decision last week Friday, but this too had been delayed. Steenkamp said that the inquiry has been postponed and would be held again for one week in April, and then for a further week in May. Speaking in an interview, Steenkamp also addressed a statement released by the National Union of Mineworkers on Wednesday, which said that construction workers at Assmang's Blackrock mine, near Kuruman, had found the remains of a worker who was buried in an unmarked grave close to the mine clinic. He noted that bone fragments, clothing and a hardhat had been discovered and that the South African Police Service (SAPS) and forensic investigators were on site, and that a dossier had been opened. The NUM said that workers were busy digging a foundation at PrimCure mine clinic when the human remains had been discovered. The union claimed that mine experts indicated that, from the initial look of things, the body could have been buried less than five years ago. “We call on the law enforcement agencies to go to the bottom of this matter," NUM's Tshepo Motsumi said. Steenkamp reiterated that it was a "case for the SAPS" and that management's duty was to inform its workforce of what was going on.

Govt stops blast-hit Assmang expansion. Mining News of 29 February 2008. 'The South African government has put a stop to the R1-billion Assmang expansion following the death of six employees, CE Jan Steenkamp confirmed on Thursday. Steenkamp told Mining Weekly Online that the expansion could, as a result, be pushed back by six months. The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs (DAEA) said earlier on Thursday that it had suspended the environmental impact assessment on Assmang’s proposed 80 000 t/y additional furnace at Cato Ridge, currently the focal point of worker protest over health issues. “Coming in the wake of enforcement action already taken against Assmang since 2007, with respect to environmental noncompliance, the tragic death of six Assmang employees is of extreme concern,” said Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism spokesperson Mava Scott, he said in a statement. “In these circumstances, authorities cannot continue to talk to Assmang about an expansion until we are assured that the company has permanently turned around its unacceptable safety and environmental record.” Steenkamp said he was “not surprised” at this move, given the fatal accident there, as well as the inquiry into reports of workers suffering manganism, a chronic disorder of the nervous system, at the plant that was currently under way. This five-day probe, led by the Department of Labour started on Monday and is expected to end on Friday. Last year, environmental management inspectors from the Deat, DAEA and the eThekwini Municipality conducted an inspection at the Cato Ridge site and found "serious" noncompliance with environmental legislation and permits pertaining to the site. The goverment said that Assmang had been issued with compliance notices and that the company would now have to persuade authorities why its disposal site permit should not be suspended. Final notices, which also contained instructions and timeframes for the implementation of various projects, including a major dust and fume extraction system on the site, would be issued in the coming weeks, it added. Meanwhile, Steenkamp said that Assmang, jointly owned by African Rainbow Minerals and Assore, was expected to begin firing up the first furnaces after Sunday's explotion, which led to the entire plant being temporarily shut, from the middle of next week. Independent auditors would deliver the final report into the accident on Friday, and Assmang would then meet with the Department of Labour on Monday. Steenkamp was hopeful that the department would then give the green light for the company to begin restarting some of the furnaces by mid-next week. He said that it would take six-months to repair the furnace destroyed in the blast, and the one immediately next to it would take until April to repair. The Cato Ridge plant produced some 220 000 t/y of ferromanganese, or between 80 t and 100 t a week.

Review manganese limit for workers' health'. IOL of 28 February 2008. 'Assmang boss Bryan Broekman has conceded that stricter laws are needed to protect South African workers from manganese poisoning, but several large industries might have to shut down if the new laws were "too strict". Broekman, the chief executive of one of the country's two major manganese producers, was giving evidence on Wednesday at a labour department inquiry into the cause of several cases of sickness at the company's Cato Ridge factory. Cross-examined by Richard Spoor on behalf of several workers diagnosed with manganism (a disease caused by exposure to manganese), Broekman disputed suggestions that occupational health and safety exposure limits for manganese workers were derived by trading off the health of workers against the economic profits of the manganese and steel industry. Spoor put it to Broekman that the present legal limit of 5mg/m³ of manganese in the air was not designed strictly to protect workers, but had been deliberately balanced against what was deemed to be affordable to the industry. Reading from the Occupational Health and Safety Act criteria for setting manganese safety exposure limits, Spoor said it was clear that money was the criterion used to trade off against workers' health. Assmang attorney Willem le Roux interjected to say that it was not a question of trade-offs, and that safety limits were determined on the basis of several criteria. Broekman said his company now believed that "it is appropriate for the labour department, with industry, to review the 5mg/m3 occupational exposure limit". He said there was no law to limit manganese exposure before 1995. But since that date his company had generally complied with the limits and there was therefore no reason for Assmang managers to believe that working conditions were unsafe if exposures complied with the law. "Nowadays we know that perhaps the 5mg limit was not safe, and on that basis it needs to be reviewed, but we will not say exactly what it should be . . . that would have to be brainstormed." He noted that South Africa controlled about 80 percent of global manganese resources, a metal which is widely used to harden steel. "Therefore manganese will be a very important part of the economy of South Africa in the future and it would be very sad if a lot of jobs were lost if limits were set which did not allow the industry to develop to its full potential." Spoor asked if he was suggesting that complying with the legal limit relieved his company of the legal duty to protect workers' health. Broekman disagreed with this suggestion. Spoor then asked Broekman to explain why he only became aware of the serious health risks of manganese after watching a television programme in 2005 when it had been his duty from the early 1990s to familiarise himself with such risks. "How does a company whose major product has been manganese for 50 years . . . come and tell us with a straight face that it did not know about the hazards (until 2005)?" Broekman said he "developed my own knowledge" on manganese risks towards the end of 2004, and this had accelerated after watching the programme. Spoor then produced a copy of a Readers' Digest book entitled The Family Guide to the Law in South Africa, published in 1982, and noted that manganese was listed as a source of poison in the workplace, along with a detailed list of symptoms associated with manganese poisoning. "The question is this: if this information is available in a family guide book published by the Readers' Digest, how is it possible that Assmang was unaware of it?" Broekman remarked: "There must be billions of books in the world, and you have found it. Most people don't read more than a few hundred books in their lifetime. It is true that manganism has existed for over 100 years and we don't dispute that. But this was not generally known." Even the labour department's approved inspection authorities had not referred specifically to the risks of manganism, he said.

Assmang ready to bring plant online after blast. Busrep of 28 February 2008. ' The Assmang ferromanganese smelter in Cato Ridge may be "switched on" by March 3, stakeholder African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) chief executive Jan Steenkamp said on Thursday. Six people died after a blast and subsequent fire ripped through the factory on Sunday. Another four people were seriously injured and were still receiving treatment. Steenkamp told Sapa on Thursday that switching on the plant depended on a number of factors. "It depends on specialist reports, the acceptance of the labour department and the withdrawal of the prohibition order," he said. He said starting operations at the plant was just a suggestion at this stage and that no final decision had been made. Asked whether it would be safe to re-open the plant or whether any new safety measures would be put in place, Steenkamp said the factory had always been safe. "The plant has been running safely for the past 75 years but yes explosions do happen...but the workers have always been safe. "I can't speculate about new safety measures... that all depends on what comes out of the report." The factory has been the subject of a labour department inquiry into workers' exposure to poisonous fumes that have resulted in 40 alleged cases of manganism. The five-day inquiry, which started on Monday, is due to end on Friday. Manganism is acquired by overexposure to airborne manganese and is a disease that affects the sufferer's central nervous system, leaving them with symptoms very similar to Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS). The department's spokeswoman Zolisa Sigabi earlier said the inquiry was aimed specifically at establishing the possible causes of the manganism. She said they also wanted to establish the level of manganese fumes or dust exposure to the workers, whether the employer had fulfilled his legal obligation of preventing exposure, and whether control mechanisms were put in place by the employer. Sigabi said the department also wanted to finalise who would be held responsible for the exposure and what measures would be implemented to prevent a re-occurrence.

Assmang must clean up before expanding. Busrep of 28 February 2008. 'He faced the prospect of many painful operations to stop his eyelids from growing inwards and to ensure he wouldn't have to eat through a straw. A long road to recovery also awaits several Assmang workers who remain in critical condition in hospital with burn injuries of varying degrees, after Sunday's explosion at the group's Cato Ridge ferromanganese processing plant. On Tuesday the blast claimed the life of a sixth victim. There is generally a strong correlation between shortcomings in workplace safety and environmental transgressions. The most obvious example is the link between poisonous dust emissions and long-term health problems of workers and surrounding communities. On this score, Assmang is no stranger to controversy. Last year it confirmed that five employees had been diagnosed with manganese poisoning, a chronic disorder of the nervous system. An inquiry into the causes of 40 more cases of suspected manganese poisoning at Cato Ridge is under way. But the other link between the environment and occupational health and safety stems from what has been a general reticence in the past by some businesses to implement thorough maintenance programmes and a tendency to defer investment in safer and cleaner systems. Shareholders often consider sweating assets to make sound financial sense, yet display dismay when their decisions to cut corners extract social costs such as heavy pollution and, in the most extreme cases, even the deaths of workers. This week Patrice Motsepe, whose African Rainbow Minerals owns half of Assmang (JSE-listed Assore owns the rest), reportedly blamed poor relations between blue-collar workers and management for the blast. Motsepe said the circumstances surrounding the incident appeared to be similar to those of an accident at the plant last year that killed one person. Another two workers died in an explosion at Cato Ridge the year before. A labour department inquiry has yet to determine the cause of Sunday's explosion, although a water leak into a furnace is suspected. Assmang's six furnaces at Cato Ridge are old and have never had to undergo environmental impact assessment (EIA) clearance, which is now mandatory for new facilities. The furnaces were shut down after the blast, and the department of labour has yet to declare them safe to resume operating. Last year the Green Scorpions found the plant had significant uncontrolled dust emissions and atrocious management of hazardous waste sites. Agency head Melissa Fourie says the environmental inspectorate has been busy at the Cato Ridge site this week and is on the verge of making "a big announcement". Assmang is planning an expansion at Cato Ridge to increase capacity by two-thirds. The KwaZulu-Natal government would be highly irresponsible were it to approve the EIA application for the new smelting capacity in this climate.

State slams Assmang for trying to block hearing. Busrep of 27 February 2008. 'The department of labour has accused Assmang of trying to delay the public inquiry into the exposure of its employees to excessive manganese dust. The attempt at a delay came when the company asked the department's officials in the panel to recuse themselves because they were biased against the company's management, the department said. It turned down Assmang's application. Department spokesperson Zolisa Sigabi said there was no need to withdraw the panel, because this was not a trial but an exercise to collate evidence. The results would be submitted to the national director of public prosecutions, who would decide whether to prosecute. Sigabi said the inquiry would continue as scheduled. If it was not completed by Friday, new dates would be set. Jan Steenkamp, an executive director at Assmang, said the company would not oppose the ruling. "We will continue until the end, and if we are not happy with the outcome, we will consider other options." Yesterday Willem le Roux, the attorney for Assmang, applied for the panel to recuse itself because there "was a reasonable apprehension of bias" against Assmang management. He cited supreme court and constitutional court judgments ruling that a "suspicion of bias" or "an impression of predisposition" was sufficient to request that panels recuse themselves. Le Roux said it was highly irregular that the panel planned to allow a member identified as Bernard Randolph to help Sibisi to testify. "He would like to be a witness in the case and judge the case himself. This is a gross irregularity." Random changes to the panel would leave members with "partial information" and would not constitute a "fair hearing", he added. The inquiry began last year. It has been postponed several times as the ferromanganese company and workers tried to work out a settlement. Lawyers for the employees said at least 50 men showed symptoms of manganism, a disease that causes infertility, brain damage, memory loss, headaches and blindness. But so far, only 10 people have been confirmed to have manganism. According to a report in The Mercury yesterday, the company has changed its tune, suggesting that it no longer believed any workers at the Cato Ridge Works were sick as a result of manganese poisoning. Meanwhile, Sigabi said all six furnaces at the Cato Ridge plant would be closed until a risk assessment was conducted, after an explosion killed six people on Sunday. The sixth person died yesterday.

Sixth person dies after KZN explosion. SABC of 26 February 2008. 'Another victim of the blast at a KwaZulu-Natal ferromanganese smelter near Durban on Sunday, died this afternoon. Netcare 911 spokesman, Chris Botha, said this was the sixth person that had died since the blast and subsequent fire that ripped through the number six furnace at Assmang ferromanganese smelter in Cato Ridge -- about 60km from Durban. One person died in the initial blast in the early hours of Sunday morning and three people died later during the course of Sunday. Another person died succumbed to his wounds on Monday. Botha said the sixth person was being treated at Pietermaritzburg's St Anne's Hospital. There are still another four people receiving treatment. The department of labour on Sunday ordered that all the furnaces be decommissioned and has launched an investigation into the explosion. The factory has been the subject of a Labour Department inquiry into workers' exposure to poisonous fumes. The latest session of the inquiry was started on Monday, but was disrupted by angry workers. All six furnaces of the Assmang plant remain closed.

Assmang furnace out for up to six months after blast. Mining News of 27 February 2008. 'African Rainbow Minerals (Arm) Ferrous CE Jan Steenkamp said on Tuesday that the furnace which had exploded at the company's Cato Ridge works on Sunday, would be out of operation for the next five to six months. The rest of the ferromanganese plant, which had stopped running owing to the implementation of a prohibition order, was expected to resume operations by Friday, with a slow ramp-up in production. Steenkamp commented that this also depended on the staff and convincing them that the environment was safe. The explosion was caused by an inflow of water into the furnace, this was initially caused by a water leak, however, Steenkamp noted that the cause of the leak had not yet been identified. When asked about the potential loss of production, Steenkamp said that all the furnaces at the Cato Ridge works produced some 220 000 t/y of ferromanganese, which would equate to between 80 t and 100 t in a week. He added that, at this stage, the company had not quantified what losses had been incurred. Meanwhile, news serivce Sapa reported that a sixth person injured in the blas had died on Tuesday afternoon. On Monday, Arm said that five people had been killed in the accident, and that four were seriously injured.

Durban's massive blast: Full-scale probe launched. DoL. 25 February 2008. 'A full-scale government investigation is underway following yesterday's (Sunday) massive explosion that left four workers dead and five others seriously injured at the Assmang plant in Cato Ridge, Durban. The inquiry aims at establishing the cause of the tragedy, including any possible negligence or flouting of occupational health and safety measures. Labour inspectors' preliminary findings indicated that a water leakage into the furnace may have led to the explosion. The impact of the explosion resulted in the wall of the control room facing the furnace to collapse allowing the flames to engulf the entire room. A worker who was alone in the control room monitoring the furnaces at that time got trapped in the fire and was killed at the scene. Another eight employees who were working close by sustained serious burns. Three died later died in hospital. The Department has since ordered a halt to all operations in the plant until a risk assessment has been conducted to ascertain whether the furnaces can become operational again. Meanwhile, the Department is continuing with its investigation into the death of a worker who was engulfed by flames in December 2007 as a result of fire erupting from a furnace at the plant. Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana has condemned the death of the workers and vowed to pull all stops in getting someone to account for the deaths and injuries. He expressed his deep condolences to the bereaved families and wished the injured workers a speedy recovery. Meanwhile, the formal enquiry into the exposure of workers to poisonous fumes at the Assmang that was adjourned in July 2007 will go ahead today at the Cato Ridge Country Club, commencing at 09h00.

Emotions high at factory. News24 Of 25 February 2006. 'Cat Ridge - Workers from a ferromanganese smelter near Durban on Monday disrupted a labour department manganism inquiry nearby. Their protest was linked to Sunday's explosion that claimed the lives of five of their colleagues. The group of about 100 workers from the Assmang ferromanganese smelter marched from the smelter to the Cato Ridge Country Club with a coffin, placing it in the middle of the hall where the hearings were due to be held. The inquiry, headed by Vuli Sibisi, is investigating the alleged 40 cases of manganism that have resulted in workers breathing in fumes with airborne manganese particles. Manganism is acquired by overexposure to airborne manganese and is a disease that affects the sufferer's central nervous system, leaving him with symptoms very similar to Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS). Assmang executive director Brian Brookeman was about to give testimony when the workers marched into the hall. Police spokesperson Superintendent Daniela Veldhuizen said police were monitoring the protest. "There were no incidents or injuries reported during the protest thus far and police will be monitoring the situation throughout the day," she said. Sunday's explosion ripped through the number 6 furnace of the smelter about 60 kilometres from Durban. One person died at the scene while a further four died during the course of Sunday and Monday morning.