Stilfontein, South Africa - January 14, 2025 Storyline: Rescuers recovered 51 additional bodies from an abandoned gold mine in South Africa on Tuesday, raising the death toll to 60 after nine bodies were retrieved on Monday, the first day of a massive rescue operation. According to a statement from the South African Police Service (SAPS) on Tuesday night, 106 illegal miners were arrested for illegal mining at the old Buffelsfontein Gold Mine in Stilfontein, North West Province. Among those arrested on Tuesday are 67 from Mozambique, 26 from Lesotho, and 11 from Zimbabwe, in addition to two South African nationals, SAPS spokesperson Athlenda Mathe confirmed. Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, who visited the site on Tuesday, said the operation was expected to last about 10 days. Ninety-two illegal miners were rescued during the two-day rescue operation, with all expected to face charges related to illegal mining and immigration violations. The situation at disused mine shafts in Stilfontein has been unfolding since August 2024, when small groups of illegal miners began emerging from the shafts. Over 1,576 illegal miners have been arrested since then, the majority of whom are foreign nationals from neighboring countries, according to the police statement. Local community members gathered at the mine, hoping for the return of their loved ones. Emergency workers have been laboring under intense heat since Monday to rescue the illegal miners, who had been trapped underground since November without vital supplies for much of the time. Community organizations, which have been urging authorities to help the miners, believe the aid came too late for many who failed to survive the ordeal. Over the years, many gold mines have closed due to declining production, only to be overtaken by illegal foreign miners seeking gold. Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Gwede Mantashe, who also visited the Buffelsfontein mine on Tuesday, emphasized the severe economic impact of illegal mining, estimating losses of 60 billion rand in 2024 alone. At the end of 2024, the country's police authorities ramped up efforts to combat illegal mining, with many miners staying underground out of fear of arrest. Police said it remained unclear how many miners were still trapped in the shafts. Shotlist: Stilfontein, North West Province, South Africa - Jan 14, 2025: 1. Various of people waiting for return of miners trapped underground; 2. Rescue operation underway; 3. Emergency medical services vehicle moving; 4. Scene nearby abandoned gold mine; 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tieho Moabi, one of miners (starting with shot 4): "I have hope that our people are going to come out. Our brothers, our friends and us in the first group. We know a lot of guys here. They are our brothers. They are our friends. They have kids. So, we are trying the best we can to help them out, because it will hurt when I see my friend's kid tomorrow running around the streets, and daddy is not around." 6. Police vehicles; 7. Health forensic pathology services vehicle moving; 8. SOUNDBITE (English) Bishop Victor Phalana, border member of Benchmarks Foundation (starting with shot 7): "Some of them are as young as 14, at least according to my estimation. They are just skin and bones. Very, very sad to look at them. So, we brought some soft porridge and we brought some water. They couldn't wait because they have not been drinking water for a long time now. And they are hungry. They are weak." 9. Scene nearby abandoned gold mine; 10. Poster calling for freeing miners, people waiting for return of miners trapped underground; 11. Officials discussing rescue plan; 12. Mametlwe Sebei, president of General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA), in interview; 13. SOUNDBITE (English) Mametlwe Sebei, president of General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA) (starting with shot 12): "The consequences are devastating, it's an enormous loss of life that could have been avoided. It is just the callousness of the political establishment and the indifference to the suffering, particularly of the poor black working class." 14. SOUNDBITE (English) Bishop Victor Phalana, border member of Benchmarks Foundation: "People are really disturbed and people are saying we shouldn't have arrived to this point where we are just taking dead bodies. This could have been arranged a long time ago." 15. Various of vehicles; 16. Rescue operation underway. [Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland]