Rescuers bring out survivors, dead from South African mine as hundreds remain trapped

ABC News

STILFONTEIN, South Africa — 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 illegal miners trapped for months in an abandoned shaft.
Police said they are uncertain how many remain, but it is likely to be hundreds.
Six of the bodies and eight survivors were recovered early Tuesday, said Mzukisi Jam, the regional chairperson of the South African National Civics Organization, an umbrella for civic and rights groups.
Some have escaped from the mine since November and been arrested, authorities have confirmed, although the exact number is not clear.
They will come out.” ___ Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa.

NEGATIVE

STILFONTEIN, South Africa — On Tuesday, rescuers sent a cage-like structure down into one of the country’s deepest gold mines to rescue survivors from an abandoned shaft that had held hundreds of illegal miners for months. It’s estimated that over 100 people perished from malnutrition or dehydration.

At least 24 bodies and 34 survivors have been removed from the Buffelsfontein Gold Mine since Friday, according to civic organizations and miners’ advocacy groups. However, over 500 miners are still thought to be underground, many of them sick and starving. Although the exact number is unknown, police stated that it is probably in the hundreds.

According to Mzukisi Jam, regional chairperson of the South African National Civics Organization, which unites civic and rights organizations, six of the bodies and eight survivors were found early Tuesday. There was Jam at the mine.

Authorities began an operation to try to force the miners out of the mine in November, and since then, there has been a tense standoff between police, miners, and local residents near the town of Stilfontein, southwest of Johannesburg. Some miners, according to their relatives, have been underground since July.

Rights organizations and activists have strongly criticized police tactics in severing the miners’ food and water supplies from the surface in an effort to force them out, but authorities maintain that the miners are able to come out and are refusing. Rights groups claim that because the shaft is too steep and the ropes and pulley system they used to enter have been removed, many of the miners are starving to death and are unable to climb out.

“We’re glad this (rescue) operation is taking place, even though we think there wouldn’t have been any fatalities if it had been carried out sooner,” Jam stated.

In some areas of gold-rich South Africa, illegal mining is widespread. When businesses close down unprofitable mines, groups of informal miners enter the area illegally in an attempt to locate any remaining deposits.

To increase their earnings, large groups of illegal miners frequently spend months underground. They bring food, water, generators, and other equipment with them, but they also depend on other members of their group on the surface to send down additional supplies.

Although the precise number is unknown, authorities have confirmed that some have escaped from the mine since November and been taken into custody. According to the police, the miners fear being arrested if they come out.

According to rights advocates, miners have no choice but to crawl out there after a perilous journey that can take days to another shaft. Many of the miners, they claimed, are too sick or frail to climb out. With multiple shafts, levels, and a labyrinth of tunnels, the mine is 215 kilometers (1.15 miles) deep. According to the community mining group, there are numerous groups of miners working in different areas of the mine.

Near the mine, locals have gathered in desperation to hear about family members. Before authorities’ official rescue operation started on Monday, the community planned its own on Friday.

Zinzi Tom, the sister of one of the miners who stayed underground, stated, “I last spoke to my brother in July, when he informed us that he was going underground.”. “One of the miners who surfaced yesterday claimed to have seen him around two weeks ago, but we had not heard from him since. He is obviously very ill and fighting for his life. “”.

The Mining Affected Communities United in Action group released two cellphone videos that they claimed were taken underground and showed dozens of miners’ dead bodies wrapped in plastic. The group also sued the authorities in December to force them to allow food, water, and medication to be sent down to the miners. A representative for the organization stated that “at least” 100 miners had perished.

A man who can be heard saying, “This is hunger,” records the cellphone footage allegedly taken from the mine’s depths. People are starving to death,” he writes, capturing gaunt-looking men seated on the mine’s moist floor. He continues, “Please assist us. Take us out or bring us some food. “.”.

The mine was scheduled to be visited by South Africa’s minister of mineral resources and police on Tuesday, but the methods used by the authorities have drawn criticism.

Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, the cabinet minister of South Africa, informed reporters in November that the government would not assist the miners, whom they viewed as “criminals.”. “”.

She reportedly told the local media, “We are not sending help to criminals.”. It is our intention to smoke them out. They will emerge. “”.

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