Efforts are underway to rescue 289 mine workers trapped underground at Sibanye Stillwater’s Kloof gold mine, located about 60 kilometers west of Johannesburg, South Africa, the company announced on Friday.
The miners, trapped at the Kloof 7 shaft—one of the country’s deepest gold mines—have been accounted for and are currently safe at an underground assembly point. A Sibanye spokesperson confirmed the company is supplying them with food and that rescue operations are progressing.
“We expect the situation to be resolved by about midday today,” the spokesperson said, adding that safety checks and a shaft assessment are ongoing before the workers are brought to the surface.
While details of the incident remain unclear, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) reported the occurrence took place around 10:00 p.m. local time on Thursday. The Kloof mine accounts for 14% of Sibanye’s total gold output and reaches depths of approximately 3,200 meters (2 miles).
Mining incidents are not uncommon in South Africa, home to some of the world’s oldest and deepest gold mines. Earlier this year, 78 bodies were recovered from an illegal mining site in a separate tragedy that highlighted the ongoing risks in the industry.
Sibanye Stillwater remains one of the few South African firms still turning profits from the region’s gold reserves, operating multiple shafts at the Kloof mine.
