Authorities in South Africa claim to have received information about the deaths of at least 31 suspected illegal miners, many of whom are thought to be from Lesotho, in a closed mine in the Free State province.
The deaths in a mining ventilation shaft on May 18 were reported to the Lesotho government, according to a statement from South Africa’s department of mineral resources.
It stated that the mine in Welkom, Free State, had ceased operations in the 1990s.
According to the mineral resources department of South Africa, further illegal miners have rescued three bodies from the mine.
The company declares that it is trying its “utmost best” to act on this information and has been coordinating with all pertinent parties, including the mine’s previous owners, to rescue the dead.
However, it claims that inspectors have analysed the circumstance and judged that the local conditions make sending a team too unsafe.
“[The] methane levels in the mine ventilation shaft 5 are very high. It is too risky to dispatch a search team to the shaft,” the department said.
In South Africa, fatal accidents at old mines are not unusual, and migrant and illegal miners frequently risk their health and safety in abandoned shafts.