Eight men, suspected to have been illegal miners, died in Driekop outside Burgersfort in Limpopo, when an entry and exit point that led to an underground tunnel where chrome was mined, collapsed, trapping them underground since Friday.

Limpopo SAPS spokesperson, Brigadier Motlafelo Mojapelo, says a South African, three Mozambicans and four Zimbabweans count among the deceased. Driekop SAPS opened an inquest docket after being called to the scene on Saturday.

Mojapelo says it is suspected that the men suffocated after heavy rains caused the entrance to the tunnel to collapse.

“The police were called to the scene on Saturday night. When they arrived, they found that community members had already dug a hole and gained access to the miners,” says Mojapelo.

He says community members had already started retrieving the bodies when police arrived.

Limpopo’s police commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe warns community members to desist from engaging in illegal mining activities because it is unsafe and against the law.

“We have established a team to deal with illegal mining activities around the province, especially in the areas along the R37 road in Sekhukhune District and many illegal miners have been arrested and mining equipment confiscated,” says Hadebe.

A post-mortem will be conducted to formally determine the cause of death.