Following the removal of at least 78 dead from a shaft this week, the South African government has come under fire for its crackdown on illegal mining that denied hundreds of miners underground access to food and water.
After a court ordered their rescue, rescuers searched for survivors for a third day on Wednesday. At least 166 individuals had been pulled alive from the abandoned pit, according to a police official on Wednesday afternoon. It is estimated that around 100 other people perished underground from malnutrition and dehydration.
The killings at the Stilfontein mine, which is around 97 miles (156 kilometers) southwest of Johannesburg, were referred to as a “unfolding massacre” by the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU).
