PROJECT THAT CHANGED THE WORLD: MPONENG GOLD MINE

摘要

Every morning from 4 am, near a town called Carletonville, about 65 km west of Johannesburg in South Africa, thousands of workers commence what must be the strangest commute in the world. They start by donning overalls and gumboots, a hard hat and headlamp, knee and arm guards, hearing protection as well as an emergency breathing apparatus. Then, thus equipped, they'll commence their morning commute to work - a journey of around 90 minutes, covering a distance of almost four kilometres, via two of the world's longest elevators (called shafts), straight down into the bowels of the earth, where virgin rock temperature can reach up to 70 ℃.