17 South African gold miners trapped underground

South African gold producer Harmony Gold
launched a rescue operation on Wednesday to free
17 miners trapped a mile underground after a fire
gutted its Doornkop mine near Johannesburg.
The company said it had made contact with eight
miners, who had managed to flee to a refuge bay
at a depth 1,700 metres.
The whereabouts of the remaining nine miners was
unknown, a company spokesman said.
Rescue teams had been sent underground but
access to the affected area has been hampered by
smoke and a subsequent rock-fall, the spokesman
added.
South Africa’s gold mines are among the deepest
in the world.