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Several miners were left trapped underground at Sibanye Gold Mine in Randfontein on Monday as a result of theft and vandalism of Eskom's infrastructure.
A spokesperson for Eskom in Gauteng Amanda Qithi says miners were unable to resurface due to a supply interruption caused by powerlines that fell.
She says the structural integrity of the pylons was compromised due to theft and vandalism.
Qithi says the pylon structures were weakened by the theft and the unstable ground caused by digging around the foundation.
She says production at the mine came to a grinding halt and Eskom had to restore the supply at a significantly high cost.
The trapped miners were all evacuated safely.
Eskom called the incident disturbing adding that the collapse of pylons carries high-voltage power lines which can pose a serious risk to members of the public.
