Local police said on Monday that eight miners were killed after a mine collapsed due to intense rainfall.
The local police spokesman said heavy rains blocked the entrance and exit of the mine with mud. The mine is located near the village of ga-Maroga in Limpopo province.
As for the nationality of the victims, the official said they were three Mozambicans, four Zimbabweans, and one South African.
The provincial police commissioner called on the local community to refrain from engaging in illegal mining activities in the disused pits, adding that the police service has set up a team to combat this scourge, especially since several illegal miners in possession of confiscated mining equipment have been arrested. Other illegal miners were rescued after being trapped in a shaft for several days.
The Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe, recently called on the government to find urgent solutions to illegal mining.