By Nellie Peyton and Bhargav Acharya STILFONTEIN, South Africa (Reuters) -At least 78 dead bodies have been pulled from an illegal gold mine in South Africa where police cut off food and water supplies for months,

A group representing informal miners in South Africa says least 100 men who were mining illegally in an abandoned gold mine have died after being trapped deep underground for months while police tried to get them out.

The number of illegal miners who’ve died in a months-long standoff with the South African authorities increased to 51, the security forces said.Most Read from BloombergThese Homes Withstood the LA Fires.