South African rescuers have so far pulled 78 bodies and rescued 166 people from the Stilfontein gold mine over three days of operations, police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe told reporters at the scene on Wednesday.

The South African government has launched a rescue operation at an abandoned gold mine in the country’s North West province, where at least 109 men have died, a group representing the miners said, after local authorities cut off vital supplies in a dramatic bid to crack down on the country’s illegal mining trade.

Rescued miners are seen as they are processed by police after being rescued at the mine shaft where rescue operations are ongoing as attempts are made to rescue illegal miners who have been underground for months,

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South African authorities have pulled at least 60 bodies from the Stilfontein gold mine over two days, police said late on Tuesday. Police began laying siege to the mine in August and cut off food and water supplies for months in an attempt to force the miners to the surface so they could be arrested as part of a crackdown on illegal mining.