News 09:00

BULLETIN 17 November 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The police welcome the interim court order on disused mining shafts in the Stilfontein area
# The Lesotho Highlands Water Project tunnel maintenance will boost supply longevity
# And, tennis: Sinner will tackle Fritz for the ATP Finals crown

# Police have welcomed an interim court order issued by the Gauteng High Court yesterday for the protection of illegal miners still underground at the disused Stilfontein mines near Klerksdorp in North West. The order provides the miners the opportunity to exit voluntarily and prohibits the blocking of the shafts. Police spokesperson, Athlenda Mathe says SAPS static deployment operations continue at all abandoned and disused mining shafts in the area. A call has once again been made to all illegal miners to resurface. She says the order does not in anyway prevent SAPS from performing its constitutional mandate:

Meanwhile, COPE demands that government takes urgent action to enforce the Mining Rehabilitation and Mine Closure Act, following the tragedy in Stilfontein. COPE’s Erick Mohlapamaswi says the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s failure to ensure mine rehabilitation and closure has left illegal miners in dangerous conditions, exposing the government’s serious neglect:

# Deputy minister of Water and Sanitation, David Mahlobo, says maintenance on the Lesotho Highlands Water Project tunnels will extend water availability. During an inspection in the Free State, he highlighted the tunnel’s role in supplying Gauteng via the Vaal River. With the tunnel closed until March 2025 for routine work, he urged patience amid ongoing water challenges:

# Tennis: Italian Jannik Sinner crushed Casper Ruud of Norway  6-1, 6-2  in front of an enthusiastic home crowd in Turin yesterday to reach the ATP Finals title decider against American Taylor Fritz, who is aiming to become the first American Finals winner since Pete Sampras. He secured his spot in the final after a thrilling victory over Alexander Zverev in the other semi-final, setting up a chance for revenge against Sinner, who defeated him in the US Open final.

# And, a necklace believed to contain jewels from the infamous Marie Antoinette Affair of the Diamond Necklace has been sold for more than 85-million-rand. This entails a scandal which paved the way for Marie Antoinette’s eventual downfall. It erupted when a hard-up noblewoman, Jeanne de la Motte, pretended to be the French queen and tricked a cardinal into giving her the necklace. Marie Antoinette was acquitted of having a hand in the scam, but her reputation never recovered. The Georgian-era piece hadn’t been seen in public for 50 years before now.

Stay tuned for more news………….