ALBAWABA - South African police retrieved the bodies of 60 illegal miners during the past two days from a disused gold shaft, AFP reported on Wednesday.
In a statement, the police in South Africa said: "On day two of operations, a total of 106 alive illegal miners were retrieved and arrested for illegal mining. Fifty-one were certified dead."
It added that: "Nine bodies had been removed the previous day."
CNN reported on Tuesday that the government in the African country started a rescue operation at an abandoned gold mine in North West province.
A group representing the miners said that at least 109 men died after local authorities' decision to halt vital supplies with the aim of cracking down on the country’s illegal mining trade.
Nonetheless, Meshack Mbangula, head of the Mining Affected Communities United in Action (MACUA), predicted that about 500 people are likely trapped underground.
