Around 800 of the 3,200 miners are still trapped underground in the South African collapsed mine, African media reported. Among them are up to 200 women. They are thought to be in a cramped space in the mine where temperatures could reach 40 degrees Celsius, and their morale is down. The rescued miners said they suffered from lack of water, food and oxygen while trapped underground, and the same is probably true of those still under.

Minerals and Energy Minister Buyelwa Sonjica announced through a spokesman that the mine will be closed for a period of three to six weeks, for investigations and repair work. Both the company, Harmony Gold Mining, and the mining union said better safety standards were needed at the pit south-west of Johannesburg.

The 3,200 workers were caught in the Elandsrand mine near Carletonville in Gauteng province on Wednesday morning, when a falling pipe damaged the mine shaft. The Elandsrand mine, which is 3,566 meters deep, was acquired earlier this year by Harmony Gold Mining from AngloGold Ashanti for 1 billion rands.

The workers were being hoisted in groups of a few hundred to the surface in a secondary lift that is normally used to transport waste and had to be reconfigured Wednesday night for the purpose.

"It's a slow process and we will work around the clock." company spokeswoman Amelia Soares told the SAPA news agency. Harmony Gold Mining was accused of negligence in the maintenance of the shaft, saying an alternative exit route from the shaft could not be used because it was under water.

The drama began when a 15-metre section of pipe column broke off the top of the shaft due to "fatigue" and plunged more than a mile to the bottom, damaging its power supply. "We suspect negligence. Because of continuous operations there is no time to make adequate checks," NUM President Senzeni Zokwana said in a statement.

Harmony Gold Mining is in constant contact with the remaining trapped workers, the company announced and the workers had adequate water and medical supplies and they had been visited by medics. Harmony is the world's fifth-biggest gold producer.