South African authorities have come under intense scrutiny for their response after civic groups said hundreds of miners have been trapped deep in an abandoned gold mine for months.

In one of the videos released by a trade union, the General Industries Workers of South Africa (Giwusa), dozens of shirtless men can been seen sitting on a dirty floor. Their faces have been blurred. A male voice off camera can be heard saying that the men are hungry and need help.

Rescued miners are seen as they are processed by police after being rescued at the mine shaft where rescue operations are ongoing as attempts are made to rescue illegal miners who have been underground for months,

Rescuers are sending a cage-like structure into one of South Africa’s deepest mines in an attempt to bring out survivors among hundreds of illegal miners trapped for months in an abandoned shaft

One hundred and eighteen illegal miners have been extracted from the Stilfontein mine in South Africa on Monday and Tuesday as part of a rescue operation, of which 36 were certified as dead, police said in a statement on Tuesday.

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South African authorities have pulled at least 60 bodies from the Stilfontein gold mine over two days, police said late on Tuesday. Police began laying siege to the mine in August and cut off food and water supplies for months in an attempt to force the miners to the surface so they could be arrested as part of a crackdown on illegal mining.