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At least 30 rescued from SA illegal mine
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South African rescuers started bringing to the surface at least 30 illegal miners yesterday who had been trapped by debris in an abandoned gold shaft near Johannesburg, an emergency services spokesman said.
Rescuers used heavy duty equipment to try to clear a way out for the men stuck in the mine near Johannesburg, emergency services said.
“So far there are four that have been removed up,” ER24 spokesman Werner Vermaak said, adding that more of the group were on their way up.
It is believed there are over 200 miners trapped inside the mine, 30 of them at a shallow level.
The 30 “have told us that underneath them there’s 200 others,” Werner Vermaak, ER24 spokesman said earlier.
But he added that he could not independently confirm the figure of 200, while local municipal officials could only confirm 30 trapped.
Those rescued will be arrested for illegal mining and trespassing, police said.
“There’s still a number of them underground who are refusing to come out for fear of arrest,” police spokesman Mack Mngomezulu said.
Municipal officials said the workers went down on Saturday into the mine, which has been dug illegally behind a cricket stadium in the Benoni district east of Johannesburg.
But police suspect some of them had been underground for up 12 days.
They were unable to come out after boulders fell and blocked their way, rescuers said.
Boulders blocking the entrance to the shaft were removed using excavation equipment, clearing the way for rescuers to pull them out.
Food and water had earlier been lowered in by rope.
Police on patrol nearby discovered that the men were trapped in the mine when a passer-by said he had heard voices of people screaming for help from underground.
Accidents are commonplace in South Africa’s mines, which are the deepest in the world.
At least eight miners were killed nearly two weeks ago after an earth tremor sparked an underground blaze at a Harmony Gold mine west of Johannesburg.
In July 2009, nine workers were killed in a rock fall in a platinum mine.
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