| 16.1 | Report to Employer Relating to Explosions, Fires and Flooding |
| (1) | The employer must ensure that a competent person reports to the employer, at appropriate intervals determined in accordance with the mine's risk assessment, on the adequacy of escape and rescue procedures at the mine relating to explosions, fires and flooding. |
[Regulation 16.1 inserted by the Schedule of Notice No. R. 904 dated 2 July 2002]
16.2 Issuing of Self-contained Self-Rescuers
(1) Coal Mines
The employer of every coal mine must ensure that no person goes underground at the mine without a body-worn self-contained self-rescuer, which complies with the South African Bureau of Standards specification SABS 1737.
(2) Mines other than Coal Mines
If at any mine other than a coal mine, the risk assessment in terms of section 11 shows that there is a significant risk that employee’s may be exposed to irrespirable atmospheres at any area at the mine, the employer must ensure that no person goes into such area without a body-worn self-contained self-rescuer, which complies with the South African Bureau of Standards specification SABS 1737.
| (3) | Sole Allocation of a Self-contained Self-Rescuer |
Any body-worn self-contained self-rescuer supplied to any employee, employed in a full time capacity at the mine, in terms of sub regulations 16.2(1) and 16.2(2), must be allocated to the employee for that employee’s sole use for the duration of the deployment of that self-contained self-rescuer at the mine or until that self-contained self-rescuer becomes defective and the employee is issued with another self-contained self-rescuer as required by these regulations.
[Regulation 16.2 inserted by Notice No. R. 569, GG 23410, dated 17 May 2002 - effective 1 September 2002]
| 16.3 | No Defective Self-contained Self-Rescuer is Issued |
| (1) | Employer to ensure no defective self-contained self-rescuer is issued |
The employer must ensure that no defective self-contained self-rescuer is issued for use to any employee at a mine.
[Regulation 16.3 inserted by Notice No. R. 569, GG 23410, dated 17 May 2002 - effective 1 September 2002]
16.4 Monitoring Programme
| (1) | Annual testing of a Self-contained Self-Rescuer |
The employer must annually have a representative sample of the self-contained self-rescuers at the mine tested by an organization accredited to do so in terms of the South African National Accreditation System for assessment of the structural integrity and functional performance.
Such representative sample must not be less than 1% of the self-contained self-rescuers at the mine and must be representative of the age and deployment of the self-contained self-rescuers.
(2) Record keeping
The employer must keep the following information, on self-contained self-rescuers at the mine, covering the preceding 24 months:—
| (a) | total number and makes of self-contained self-rescuers in service at the mine; |
| (b) | number and make of self-contained self-rescuers purchased by the mine in that period; |
| (c) | number and make of self-contained self-rescuers withdrawn from use by the mine in that period; |
| (d) | the number of shifts worked per day (1 , 2 or 3); |
| (e) | number of self-contained self-rescuers in daily use (average for each month); |
| (f) | number of employees underground (average per shift); |
| (g) | number of spare self-contained self-rescuers available (average per month); |
| (h) | a tabulation of the type of defects found; |
| (i) | number of self-contained self-rescuers repaired/refurbished; and |
| (j) | number of self-contained self-rescuers tested in terms of regulation 16.4(1). |
[Regulation 16.4 inserted by Notice No. R. 569, GG 23410, dated 17 May 2002 - effective 1 September 2002]
16.5 Emergency Preparedness and Response
Definitions
For purposes of regulation 16.5, unless the context indicates otherwise—
"emergency" means a situation, event or set of circumstances at a mine that could threaten the health or safety of persons at or off the mine, and which requires immediate remedial action, such as the evacuation, rescue or recovery of persons, to prevent serious injury or harm, or further serious injury or harm, to persons;
"breathing apparatus" means an apparatus, which renders the user independent from breathing from the atmosphere for a minimum of two (2) hours.
| (1) | The employer at every underground mine must— |
| (a) | provide and maintain, readily available at the mine, mine rescue teams, consisting of at least five competent persons, per mine rescue team, in the following minimum proportions determined by the maximum number of persons who could be underground at any one time— |
| (i) | where there could be between 100 and 1100 persons underground, at least 1 mine rescue team; |
| (ii) | where there could be between 1101 and 3600 persons underground at least 2 mine rescue teams; |
| (iii) | where there could be between 3601 and 8100 persons underground at least 3 mine rescue teams; and |
| (iv) | where there could be more than 8100 persons underground at least 3 mine rescue teams and at least 1 additional mine rescue team for every additional 6300 persons who could be underground; |
| (b) | have readily available, at the mine for use by the rescue team members contemplated in regulation 16.5(1)(a), sufficient breathing apparatus that may be required in any emergency and which breathing apparatus must continually comply with SANS 50145:1997/EN 145:1997 "Respiratory protective devices - Self-contained closed-circuit breathing apparatus - Compressed oxygen or compressed oxygen-nitrogen type - Requirements, testing, marking"; |
| (c) | enter into a contract with a mines rescue service provider to coordinate and facilitate the provision of mines rescue teams and other services, relating to an emergency, on a cooperative basis; and |
| (d) | immediately notify such mines rescue service provider should any emergency occur at the mine that may require the use of rescue team members, contemplated in 16.5(l)(a), or the use of the services of such mines rescue service provider. |
| (2) | For the purposes of regulation 16.5(1)(c) and (d), a mines rescue service provider must— |
| (a) | be an organisation/institution which has personnel with specialist knowledge and experience in mines rescue and emergencies and which has access to rescue equipment and training facilities, including facilities for Heat Tolerance Testing, Workload Testing and Simulated Training; |
| (b) | render an emergency rescue service on a co-operative basis; |
| (c) | provide mines rescue services with emphasis on mobilisation of mine rescue teams, quantity or access to rescue teams, emergency communication, additional emergency resources, back up facilities and transport; |
| (d) | ensure that any breathing apparatus that may be used by mine rescue teams continually complies with SANS 50145: 1997lEN 145:1997 "Respiratory protective devices - Self-contained closed circuit breathing apparatus - Compressed oxygen or compressed oxygen-nitrogen type - Requirements, testing, marking"; |
| (e) | ensure that their personnel is competent to check and maintain any rescue equipment used by it in accordance with the Original Equipment Manufacturer's specifications; |
| (f) | test and maintain the functional performance of any other rescue equipment used by it in accordance with the Original Equipment Manufacturer's specifications; and |
| (g) | ensure that the rescue team members used by them to provide mines rescue services meet the qualification requirements as prescribed in Chapter 22. |
| (3) | Every mines rescue service provider, referred to in regulation 16.5(2), must— |
| (a) | keep a register of all persons who have been found competent to practice as a rescue team member by that mines rescue service provider; |
| (b) | implement and maintain a system to issue licences to practice to persons contemplated in 16.5(3)(a) and who meet such criteria as determined by the rescue service provider, which criteria must include at least the following— |
| (i) | the person has not attained the age of 46 years; |
| (ii) | the person has been declared medically fit in terms of the requirements of the mine's "Code of Practice on Minimum Standards of Fitness to Perform Work at the Mine" as may be amended from time to time. prepared in accordance with the : Guideline for the Compilation of a Mandatory Code of Practice on Minimum Standards of Fitness to Perform Work at a Mine; |
| (iii) | the person has undergone and passed the Heat Tolerance Test, conducted in terms of Chamber of Mines of South Africa Research Organization Research Report No. 29/87 - "A guide to the selection and classification of rescue brigadesmen on the basis of Heat tolerance", initially and thereafter at intervals not exceeding 24 months; |
| (iv) | the person has undergone refresher-training sessions as determined by the mines rescue service provider at intervals of not more than 3 months. At least 2 of these trainings per annum must be in a mine or simulated mine, in an atmosphere filled with smoke, whilst using a breathing apparatus; and |
| (v) | the person has undergone and passed the Work Load Test, conducted in terms of the Chamber of Mines of South Africa S & TS Circular No. 39/93 dated 5 April 1993, initially and thereafter at intervals not exceeding 12 months. |
| (c) | monitor compliance by persons, issued with a licence to practice by it, with the requirements contemplated in regulation 16.5(3)(b) and suspend or revoke any such licence if the person no longer meets any of those requirements, and re-issue a licence when the person again meets the requirements. |
| (4) | Whenever an emergency occurs at a mine that requires the deployment of mine rescue teams, the employer and any mines rescue service provider notified in terms of regulation 16.5(1)(d) and whose assistance has been requested, must take reasonable measures to ensure that the required mine rescue teams are deployed as soon as possible. |
| (5) | No employer or mines rescue service provider may allow any rescue team member contemplated in regulation 16.5(1)(a) to be deployed as a member of a mine rescue team during an emergency unless such rescue team member is in possession of a valid licence to practice , as contemplated in regulation 16.5(3) and has passed a pre-operational medical examination, determined by the mines rescue service provider, to ensure that the rescue team member is medically fit at the time to be so deployed. |
[Regulation 16.5 inserted by Government Notice No. 86 dated 1 February 2008]
16.6 Refuge bays
| (1) | The employer of every underground mine must ensure that: |
| (a) | readily accessible refuge bays are provided in the underground workings of the mine; and |
| (b) | where a mine is required to have self-contained self rescuers in terms of regulation 16.2 above, such refuge bays are located within the limits of protection afforded by the self-contained self-rescuers in use at the mine, when being used. |
| (2) | The employer must take reasonably practicable measures to ensure, that having regard to the number of persons likely to be present in the area served by the refuge bay, every refuge bay complies with at least the following— |
| (a) | is of sufficient size; |
| (b) | is equipped with means for the sufficient supply of respirable air; |
| (c) | is equipped with a sufficient supply of potable water; |
| (d) | is equipped with sufficient ablution facilities; |
| (e) | is equipped with sufficient illumination; |
| (f) | is equipped with sufficient first aid equipment; |
| (g) | is equipped with efficient means to communicate verbally to surface; |
| (h) | is situated, where practicable, in an area not being used for storage of combustible material or close to such an area; |
| (i) | is constructed in such a way that air containing noxious smoke, fumes or gases will not enter the refuge bay; |
| (j) | a plan of the escape route is displayed in the refuge bay, indicating the position of the refuge bay in relation to the shaft or any other egress or access way to the surface; |
| (k) | a sign is displayed in the refuge bay, setting out the emergency procedures to be followed in the refuge bay and relevant emergency phone numbers; and |
| (l) | has a means to facilitate clear identification of the location of the refuge bay from the outside in poor visibility. |
| (3) | The employer must take reasonably practicable measures to ensure that every refuge bay is examined to ensure compliance with 16.6.(2)(a) to (l)— |
| (a) | at least once every 30 days by a person appointed in terms of regulation 2.15.1 or 2.17.1 in force in terms of item 4 of Schedule 4 of the Act or any other employee of a higher ranking; |
| (b) | at least once every 90 days by a person appointed in terms of section 12 of the Act, or by a person who holds the Intermediate Certificate in Mine Environmental Control, issued by the Chamber of Mines of South Africa, working under the control of a person appointed in terms of section 12 of the Act. |
| (4) | The employer must take reasonably practicable measures to ensure that a written report on the inspection contemplated in regulation 16.6(3)(b) is provided within 7 days to the manager appointed in terms of section 3(1)(a). |
[Regulation 16.6 inserted by Notice No. R. 906 dated 21 November 2014]
