AUTHORITIES in South Africa have put together a team, including mine rescue experts, to come up with a plan to bring to surface illegal miners

On Friday, a government delegation led by the police minister visited the site and engaged with the community and relatives of miners who remain trapped in a disused gold mine in a town southwest of Johannesburg.

“We need a much quicker process because it is risky and dangerous for them to remain where they are for a longer period," said Senzo Mchunu. "Now, in order to achieve that, not only do we need the multiplicity of agencies here, as is currently the case, including the South African National Defence Force. But we need the community—we need their understanding, their cooperation, and their willingness to confront challenges.”

Mchunu added that they had been informed the mineshaft was 2,500 metres deep and that any intervention would be extremely dangerous. He also noted that his team was mindful of the possibility that the miners might be heavily armed.

According to the police, 369 firearms, 10,000 rounds of ammunition, five million rand (£220,000) in cash, and 32 million rand (£1.4 million) worth of uncut diamonds have been recovered from illegal miners since the government's operation began.

Officials have closed entrances to the mineshaft, which had been used to supply food, water, and other basic necessities, as part of a government strategy to force the miners to come to the surface and be arrested.

On Thursday, a body believed to be that of one of the miners was brought to the surface. Police stated they were working to determine the person's identity and cause of death.

Relatives of the miners remain torn between anguish and hope.

“Four of my family members were trapped in Shaft 10 and Shaft 3. So far, only my partner has made it out. The three others are still underground. I have no idea if they are alive because we’ve heard of dead bodies being pulled out of there. We haven’t had a chance to see or identify any of the bodies. But so far, I remain hopeful and may get some sleep at night,” shared Priscilla.

Xuna, another community member, expressed her outrage: “Some members of the government are parents to young boys. How would they feel if their children were underground, dying of hunger? Would they be happy? Of course not. But their children live privileged lives. The minister came to see the shaft this morning, and I hope he witnessed the tragedy and pain happening underground. May he have the heart to understand that these are also people’s children.”

There are no official estimates of the number of trapped miners. However, police initially cited local information and suggested that up to 4,000 people might be underground. On Thursday, a police spokesperson said that figure was highly inflated, estimating instead that about 400 individuals could be underground.

More than 1,000 miners have surfaced at various mines in North West province, with many reported to be weak, hungry, and unwell after spending weeks without basic necessities.