northwestprovinceNews24 reports that the families of the illegal miners found dead in Orkney, North West, last week started the grim task of identifying their bodies on Monday.

Six bodies were found near a disused ventilation shaft and another 14 along a road. The cause of the deaths is not clear yet. North West Premier Job Mokgoro and Lesotho Consul General Selimo Thabane expressed their intention to help the families with the identification process after establishing that most of the deceased were from Lesotho. They had allegedly been mining illegally. EWN reported that at least one miner has been identified, but the identity has not been released. City Press reported that a video was being analysed which could be of a person named "Mafifi" pleading for advice on how to bring bodies to the surface.  He says in the video that the deceased were "hit by some smoke". Some of the miners had notes tucked into the wrappings their bodies were swaddled with, which could contain their identities.


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