| Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane called on the nation to rally behind the families of the trapped mineworkers.(SABC) |
Management of the Lily Gold Mine near Barberton in Mpumalanga now says it could take up to six months to get to its three staff members trapped underground.
Experts say they will need a new tunnel to reach the container in which the three were inside when it collapsed into a shaft following a rock fall more than a month ago.
On Thursday, Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane called on the nation to rally behind the families of the trapped miners.
He was speaking at a media briefing in Pretoria.
“We have come to this point where we request that everyone to be patient. This mission is taking a bit longer than we had expected. We have listened to the experts, we believe it is actually the safe option because our primary task is to ensure that nobody gets hurt during this phase. We want to call upon the nation to rally behind the affected families.”
