Around 950 miners are trapped underground in South Africa after a power outage, according to the mine operator.
The workers are stuck in the Sibanye-Stilwater Beatrix gold mine near the city of Welkom, in central Free State.
Thunderstorms were blamed for bringing down power lines near the site, leaving the miners stranded in tunnels and shafts.
Around 40 of those were rescued overnight but around 900 are still trapped underground.
James Wellsted, a spokesman for the company, told local media the miners were safe and were receiving food and water.
He said power was being restored but there was not yet enough to bring the miners to the surface.
Joseph Mathunjwa, president of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union said the incident raised “serious concerns regarding the lack of emergency plans at the mine” amid reports the mine’s owner was forced to borrow a generator from another firm.
“Lives might already be threatened due to dehydration and blood sugar issues because of a lack of nutrition,” he said.
“It is also quite common for adults to be on chronic medication, and it is highly probable that there are some workers who are trapped without access to medicine.”
Thirty one miners were killed last May after a gas explosion at another mine also near Welkom.
Those miners, said to be from Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Lesotho, were killed after the blast at Harmony Gold's Eland mine.
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