Police say at least 24 bodies and 37 survivors have been brought out of the Buffelsfontein Gold Mine since Friday, but more than 500 are still believed to be underground, many of them ill and starving
Rescuer workers assist an illegal miner who has been trapped deep in an abandoned gold mine for months, in Stilfontein, South Africa, on Jan. 14.Rescuers sent a cage-like structure down into one of South Africa’s deepest gold mines on Tuesday to bring out survivors among hundreds of miners who were working illegally in an abandoned shaft and have been trapped for months. More than 100 are believed to have died of starvation or dehydration.
Civic groups won a court case to force authorities to allow food, water and medicine to be sent down to the miners. But they say the supplies aren’t enough and many of the miners are dying of starvation and unable to climb out because the shaft is too steep and the ropes and pulley system they used to enter have been removed.
Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe visited the site Tuesday and said that more than 1,500 miners who resurfaced from the Buffelsfontein mine have been arrested since authorities began a larger crackdown on illegal mining in late 2023. He said the vast majority were foreign nationals from neighboring countries.
Residents have gathered near the mine desperately waiting for news of family members. The community organized its own rescue operation on Friday before the official effort by authorities began Monday. The cellphone videos purportedly from the depths of the mine are filmed by a man who can be heard saying, “This is hunger. People are dying because of hunger,” as he records emaciated-looking men sitting on the damp floor of the mine. He adds: “Please help us. Bring us food or take us out.”
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