One worker killed and three others injured at Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa.

One worker has been killed and another three injured in an incident at the Marikana Platinum Mine near Rustenburg in North West Province, South Africa, according to mine operators Lonmin. The company has released a statement confirming that the incident was a mining accident, but otherwise released no further details at this time.  The Lonmin mine has been plagued with violence associated with rivalry between two unions, the ANC-affiliated National Union of Mineworkers and the independent Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, for over a year. This is the first mining fatality at the mine since 2010, when a rockfall killed five workers.

Workers underground at the Marikana Mine. Greg Marinovich.

South Africa is the world's largest producer of Platinum, accounting for 77% of global production, and having 80% of the world's known reserves. The Marikana mine alone accounts for 12% of the world's production, with a yearly production target of 750 000 ounces (unlikely to be met this year due to the industrial action). It also produces significant quantities of palladium, rhodium, gold and chromium. The mine is located on the western limb of South Africa's Bushveld Igneous Complex, which outcrops around the edges of the Transvaal Basin and contains some of the Earth's richest mineral deposits, notably of platinum, palladium, osmium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium, iron, tin, chromium, titanium and vanadium. It is thought to have formed by the intrusion of metal rich magma into the Earth's crust around 2 billion years ago.

See also Worker killed at the Bokoni Platinum Mine in South Africa's Limpopo Province, Union official assassinated at Lonmin's Marikana Platinum Mine, Shooting at Lonmin's Marikana Platinum Mine, Two union officials shot at Lonmin Platinum Mine in Marikana, South Africa and At least 10 South African miners injured by rubber bullets in confrontation at Rustenburg mine.

Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook.

Union official assassinated at Lonmin's Marikana Platinum Mine.

A fifty-three year old woman, identified as a shop steward from the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), was shot outside her home, close to the Lonmin operated Marikana Platinum Mine, at around 10.30 am local time (around 8.30 am GMT) on Monday 12 August 2013. The identity of the Assassins is unknown, but it is thought likely that the shooting is connected to an ongoing rivalry between the NUM and rival union the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), which has resulted in a number of such incidents.

South African Police at the scene of Monday's shooting. AFP/Getty Images.

The NUM is closely associated with the ruling ANC, and was heavily involved in the struggle against apartheid. However since the ANC came to power it has been accused of becoming to close to the mining companies, who the ANC need to remain on good terms with. The newer AMCU claim that workers in the mining industry are receiving considerably lower wages than they ought to be able to expect, and have organized a string of strikes across the sector, brining a number of mining companies to the negotiating table, but also resulting in some violent clashes with the police and members of other political organizations. In August 2012 police opened fire on AMCU workers at a rally at the Marikana Mine, killing at least 34 people, the worst single outbreak of violence in South Africa since the end of the Apartheid system.

The approximate location of the Marikana Platinum Mine. Google Maps.

See also Shooting at Lonmin's Marikana Platinum Mine, Two union officials shot at Lonmin Platinum Mine in Marikana, South Africa, At least 10 South African miners injured by rubber bullets in confrontation at Rustenburg mine and Massacre at Lonmin Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa.

Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook.

Shooting at Lonmin's Marikana Platinum Mine.

A 49 year old man, believed to be a team leader for the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), was shot dead at the  Lonmin-owned Marikana Platinum Mine in Rustenburg in northeast South Africa. The incident happened on Sunday 28 July 2013, but the South African Police Service have yet to release details of the event, which is thought to be associated with the ongoing (and often bloody) dispute between the AMCU and it's more established rival the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).

The approximate location of the Lonmin Marikana Mine. Google Maps.

The NUM is closely associated with the ruling ANC, and was heavily involved in the struggle against apartheid. However since the ANC came to power it has been accused of becoming to close to the mining companies, who the ANC need to remain on good terms with. The newer AMCU claim that workers in the mining industry are receiving considerably lower wages than they ought to be able to expect, and have organized a string of strikes across the sector, brining a number of mining companies to the negotiating table, but also resulting in some violent clashes with the police and members of other political organizations. In August 2012 police opened fire on AMCU workers at a rally at the Marikana Mine, killing at least 34 people, the worst single outbreak of violence in South Africa since the end of the Apartheid system.

See also Two union officials shot at Lonmin Platinum Mine in Marikana, South Africa, At least 10 South African miners injured by rubber bullets in confrontation at Rustenburg mine and Massacre at Lonmin Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa.

Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook.