The Wankie coal mine disaster took place on 6 June 1972 when a series of underground explosions occurred at the Wankie No. 2 colliery in

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

(now known as

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

), which was owned by the Anglo-American Corporation. With 427 fatalities, it remains the deadliest mine accident to date in the country's history. The disaster took place at the Wankie No.2 colliery in Wankie, (now known as

Hwange Hwange (formerly Wankie) is a town in Zimbabwe, located in Hwange District, in Matabeleland North Province, in northwestern Zimbabwe, close to the international borders with Botswana and Zambia. It lies approximately , by road, southeast of Vi ...

) in the Rhodesian province of

Matabeleland North Matabeleland North is a Provinces of Zimbabwe, province in western Zimbabwe. With a population of 749,017 as of the Zimbabwean census, 2012, 2012 census, it is the country's second-least populous province, after Matabeleland South Province, Matab ...

, when several gas explosions ripped through the mine. It was initially believed that 468 miners were trapped, but the number was lowered after the owners found a number of people had not shown up for work. Eight men were pulled alive from the mine after the initial explosions. Two new explosions on 7 June poured clouds of poisonous gas into the 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) of tunnels, making further rescue attempts impossible. On 9 June, the general manager of the Wankie colliery, Gordon Livingstone-Blevins, decided to leave the 424 bodies where they were. Three bodies had been recovered after the initial explosions. A mass memorial service took place on 11 June at a nearby football stadium, where a crowd of about 5,000 people paid tribute. "This has cast a gloom over the whole country," Rhodesian Prime Minister

Ian Smith Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 1919 – 20 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to ...

said during the service. In response to the disaster, the

President of Rhodesia The president of Rhodesia was the head of state of Rhodesia from 1970 to 1979. As Rhodesia reckoned itself a parliamentary republic rather than a presidential republic at the time, the president's post was almost entirely ceremonial, and the r ...

Clifford Dupont set up the Wankie Disaster Relief Fund The Valiant Years by Beryl Salt (Galaxie Press 1978)

References

{{coord missing, Zimbabwe 1972 disasters in Rhodesia 1972 in Rhodesia Mining disasters in Zimbabwe