Police say 350-400 people have stayed in Stilfontein mine to avoid arrest after minister vowed to ‘smoke them out’
South African authorities are assessing whether it is safe to rescue potentially thousands of illegal miners who may be trapped underground, after police stopped food, water and medicine being delivered to them about two weeks ago to try to force the miners to the surface.
A police spokesperson, Athlenda Mathe, insisted to reporters on Tuesday that the miners were not trapped in the abandoned goldmine in Stilfontein, a town about 100 miles south-west of Johannesburg, but rather staying underground to avoid being arrested.
About Author
More Stories
Bird flu in Canada may have mutated to become more transmissible to humans
Police remain confident of arresting suspects in 2022 Dutch art fair heist
Gender pay gap data reveals Australia’s female CEOs paid $170,000 less than men on average