Rescuers recovered the bodies of eight miners from a South African gold mine on Thursday.

The accident occurred after an earthquake damaged power cables, sparking a fire a kilometre underground at the Doornkop mine, 30 kilometres west of Johannesburg.

Eight workers were rescued from the same mine yesterday and are recovering. One worker is still missing.

South Africa’s gold mines are the deepest and some of the most dangerous in the world.

Meanwhile, wage talks between the world’s top three platinum producers and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) have collapsed after weeks of strikes.

Platinum miners have downed tools and are calling for a doubling in pay as the crisis deepens.

Producer Lonmin has offered a higher-than-inflation nine percent increase, which has not been accepted.

The strike has seen outbreaks of violence and is costing Africa’s biggest economy the equivalent of around 26 million euros a day.