Thabazimbi is an

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

mining town in the

Limpopo Limpopo () is the northernmost Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a ...

province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. The town is at the feet of the Ysterberg and is surrounded by the Witfonteinrand and Boshofberg with the majestic Kransberg in the background. The name Thabazimbi means ''mountain of iron'' because of the large

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

reef that was discovered in 1919 by J. H. Williams. The mine boasts one of the largest mining shafts in Africa. More than two million tonnes of ore are mined every year and hauled by train to Mittal's iron and steel works. The

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

line from

Rustenburg Rustenburg (; , Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch: ''City of Rest'') is a town at the foot of the Magaliesberg mountain range. Rustenburg is the most populous city in North West (South African province), North West province, South Africa (549 ...

reached the area in the 1930s and full scale iron and

steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

production began. The town was proclaimed in 1953. Kumba Iron Ore, previously Kumba Resources, is now the principal operator of the iron ore mine. Thabazimbi - Iron ore mining - 001

The Marakele National Park about 20 km north-east of the town and in the heart of Waterberg Mountains is characterised by contrasting mountain landscapes, hills and valleys, as well a variety of wildlife. Marakele National Park is also the home of some of the Tuli elephants that were caught up in controversy in 1999 involving

animal cruelty Cruelty to animals, also called animal abuse, animal neglect or animal cruelty, is the infliction of suffering or Injury, harm by humans upon animals, either by omission (neglect) or by commission. More narrowly, it can be the causing of harm ...

in South Africa. In the post-apartheid era, the town made headlines in 2003 as the site of Kamp Staaldraad, the Springboks' infamous training camp prior to the

Rugby World Cup The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport. The tournament is administer ...

. The excesses of Kamp Staaldraad helped lead to an almost complete housecleaning of the upper administrative levels of South African

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

References

External links

Thabazimbi Online Business CatalogDie Kwêvoël
{{Authority control Populated places in the Thabazimbi Local Municipality Mining communities in South Africa