Lily Mine Collapse: Families' hope dwindling
Families are for the first time facing the heartbreaking reality that the three workers at the Lily Mine near Barberton may not be found alive.
Solomon Nyerenda, Pretty Nkambule and Yvonne Mnisi have been trapped underground for 12 days after a ground collapse at the Mpumalanga mine.
Rescue operations at the mine were halted on Saturday after some of the rockface collapsed, a setback that continued over the weekend.
Mine management went underground on Tuesday to assess the stability of the shaft, as well as the surrounding area, and to inspect a second escape route to make sure it is safe enough before sending workers back underground.
Despite the time that has passed, mine management and union Amcu maintained over the weekend that this was still a search and rescue operation, and not a recovery.
Solomon's father, Kennedy Nyerende, disagrees.
"We lost hope now. If you count the days from that day up to now it is difficult for them to rescue those bodies. Now it's talking about bones, not bodies," he said.
The media is s expected to be briefed on the future of the rescue operations.
Maryke Vermaak filed this report from Lily Mine earlier today...
Edited by Suné du Toit