Illegal mining is putting parts of Johannesburg’s infrastructure under growing pressure, with roads collapsing, power equipment at risk and residents reporting damage linked to underground blasting.
Along Wemmer Pan Road, sections of the road have collapsed while cracks and sinkholes have appeared in areas affected by mining beneath the city.
Residents and officials say the problem is no longer limited to abandoned shafts. Underground activity is now threatening buildings, transport networks, electricity infrastructure and communities.
Blasting felt beneath homes
Roodepoort resident Voneen Trompeter told AFP that residents initially experienced underground blasting and tremors that caused buildings to shake.
She said the situation has since become more dangerous, with shootings also reported in the area.
Illegal miners, commonly known as zama zamas, often enter abandoned mine shafts or create new underground workings in search of gold and other minerals.
Gauteng legislature member Michael Sun said illegal mining has also damaged water pipes, roads and electricity cables.
City Power infrastructure under threat
City Power has warned that excavation beneath Johannesburg is affecting ground stability around critical electricity infrastructure.
Spokesperson Isaac Mangena said substations, transformers, pylons and transmission towers are at risk, with some infrastructure already beginning to sink.
Johannesburg’s long mining history has left hundreds of abandoned shafts along the city’s main gold reef.
Mining expert David van Wyk warned that infrastructure damage could worsen, particularly where abandoned workings and acidic mine water contribute to unstable ground and sinkholes.
He estimates that more than 34,000 irregular miners are operating across South Africa.
Communities living with the damage
In Denver, a businessman told AFP that underground blasting had left him concerned about the stability of his factory after cracks appeared in the building.
Outside Carletonville, illegal miners have also occupied an abandoned school, according to local councillor Moiketsi Ntilane.
Further north in Bapong, residents are living alongside large pits created during illegal chrome mining.
President Cyril Ramaphosa deployed troops across Gauteng in March to support police operations against illegal mining and crime.
Despite increased patrols, communities say the physical damage left behind remains a serious safety threat.