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Trapped deep underground for months, at least 100 'illegal' miners die underground in South Africa

Trapped deep underground for months, at least 100 'illegal' miners die underground in South Africa

At least 100 men working illegally in an abandoned gold mine in South Africa have died after being trapped deep underground for months as police tried to force them to leave, a group representing the miners said.

More than 500 others are still trapped, the group said on Monday, foreign media reported, according to the Telegraph.

Sabelo Mnguni, a spokesman for the United Action Group of Mining-Affected Communities, told The Associated Press that a cellphone sent to the surface with some rescued miners on Friday had two videos on it showing dozens of bodies underground wrapped in plastic bags.


Mnguni stressed that "a minimum" of 100 men had died at the mine in the North-West province, where police initially launched an operation in November to force the miners to leave.

They were suspected of having died of starvation or dehydration, Mnguni said. He said 18 bodies had been recovered since Friday.

Nine of these bodies were found in a community-led operation on Friday, he added.

Nine others were found in an official rescue operation by authorities on Monday, when 26 more survivors were pulled out, Mnguni further stressed.

Police spokesman Brigadier Sebata Mokgwabone said they were still verifying information on how many bodies had been found and how many survivors had been pulled out after a new rescue operation began on Monday.

Authorities now hope to get all the miners out. /Telegraph/

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