The scale of isolation


Often, when we talk about the restrictions that the pandemic has brought over the last year, we talk about remoteness. For many of us this has meant our friends and colleagues are not necessarily further away but can be harder to reach.
In most cases this has been offset by the closeness of our families or those we live with. If we are to be locked down, it is at least with those we care for and those we know the best.
For our colleague Mohamed Ezz Eldin Abdelaziz lockdown not only meant his movement was restricted, but he was also isolated from family and friends.


Mining in Sierra Leone


Sierra Rutile, is a leading mineral sands company, operating out of Sierra Leone. In the Moyamba and Bonthe districts of the Southern Region of Sierra Leone, they operate a mine that produces high quality rutile, ilmenite and zircon. In December 2019, Mantrac secured a contract to provide electrical equipment for the site.
A series of generators were supplied for a 7MW power rental plant comprising 6 x 3516 XQ2000 Caterpillar units with switch gear and fuel tanks to support the operations at the mine site. As with many of our contracts a servicing component was included to ensure that the customer gets the best from their purchases, and their relationship with Mantrac.
In 2020, Mohammed was dispatched from Egypt to assist with the installation work. He was intended to be part of a team, with each member relieving the last after a set period.
As the COVID-19 pandemic began to encroach on Sierra Leone several cases were detected at the mine site, resulting in a closure for quarantining measures, which included Mohammed.
At this point, Sierra Rutile had to decide about their personnel policies when the initial quarantine was over. How could they protect their business and their workers? The decision they settled on was to place an embargo on anyone new entering the site.
Mohammed would have to stay on site to finish the work without relief as nobody new could come to the site and if he left there would be nobody to work on the installation.
The customer could potentially have a power failure and the mine would no longer be operable. Showing the best of Mantrac, Mohammed agreed to stay and see the work through to its completion. While he was based in Sierra Leone at the mine site sad news arrived. Mohammed’s mother had passed away at home in Egypt.
We’ve all felt disconnection from our loved ones this year, but we can only imagine how this must have felt for Mohammed, to be stuck so far from the one place he would naturally want to be. His dedication to his work, to Mantrac, to all of us, is deeply commendable.


Overcoming challenges


The isolation and distance of the last year have tested how we live our lives. It has forced us to find new ways of working, new paths to success and new ways of being who we are.
The last year, and Mohammed’s story, have shown us that while we may encounter professional and personal challenges it is within us to overcome them, to find success for ourselves and those around us.