Steelfontein, South Africa—— Rescuers and volunteers rescued at least 78 dead miners and more than 160 survivors from an abandoned gold mine in South Africa. They spent more than two months in a standoff with authorities who demanded that they surrender to police because they were mining illegally.

Hundreds of people were still believed to be trapped on Wednesday, with the death toll expected to rise in the disaster, which has sparked criticism of the South African government's decision to try to "drive them away" by temporarily cutting off food and other supplies. Authorities also removed a system of ropes and pulleys used by miners to enter and exit at least one shaft and transport supplies, civil groups claimed.

The groups say weeks of government refusal to carry out rescue efforts effectively resulted in dozens of miners dying of starvation or dehydration. According to the court order, rescue efforts are currently underway, but only a few miners can be rescued at a time and the operation may take 10 days.

South African authorities argue the miners were always able to exit through another shaft at the Bafilsfontein gold mine, one of the deepest mines in the mineral-rich country.

But activists say it will involve dangerous treks underground that could take days for some, with many becoming too weak or sick after months underground with little food and water. Police claimed some miners refused to come out.

The rescue operation, ordered by a court last week at the request of a miner's relative, began on Monday. A specialist mining rescue company has dropped a small cage thousands of meters (feet) into the mine to recover survivors and bodies. But company personnel did not enter the mine because they deemed it too dangerous - instead, community volunteers went into the mine to help the miners out.

Police first tried to force miners out of the closed mine near the town of Steelfontein, southwest of Johannesburg, last November by cutting off supplies. The move is part of a larger crackdown on illegal mining, triggering a standoff between authorities and miners and community members.

Courts have ruled that authorities must allow supplies in, but civil society groups believe officials need to do more at this time because miners are unable to bring enough food and water into the mines, even without police intervention, and the situation is becoming increasingly dire.

The mine is 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles) deep and has multiple shafts, layers and a maze of tunnels. A group representing the miners said there were many groups throughout the mine and estimated that more than 500 miners were underground when the rescue began.

It was unclear how long they had been underground, but relatives said some had been there since July.

Police said on Wednesday that 78 bodies had so far been found and 166 survivors rescued since official rescue operations began. A community group said nine more bodies were discovered on Friday after members tried to rescue the miners themselves, adding to an unconfirmed number of bodies found in previous weeks.

Civil society groups representing miners said at least 100 people died.

Official rescue efforts have been slow because only a few people can fit in the cage at a time and the shaft is too deep.

Authorities argue the miners could have left if they wanted - police said more than 1,000 had left ahead of the rescue operation - but did not do so because they feared arrest. Police said they had arrested everyone present before and after the rescue operation.

They face charges of illegal mining and trespassing. Authorities seized gold, explosives, guns and more than $2 million in cash from the miners.

A civil society group representing miners released two videos over the weekend showing allegedly harsh conditions underground. The group said the videos were shot on a mobile phone carried by a miner from the mine and included a note urging people to watch them.

In the photos, dozens of what appear to be corpses can be seen lined up in a dark cave and wrapped in plastic. They also showed topless miners with haggard faces, while the photographers said they were dying and begged authorities to bring them food and rescue them.

The authorities have been particularly criticized for their tactics last year, when they cut off underground miners from food and other supplies for a period. A South African cabinet minister said this was to "drive them out", adding that authorities would not help the miners because they were "criminals".

Human rights groups have condemned the plan, accusing authorities of contributing to the "carnage" at the mine, and community members have gathered at the site holding placards criticizing authorities.

Despite rising anger among local communities, the tragedy did not trigger a strong reaction across South Africa, where illegal mining is a regular fixture in the news.

The practice is common among mines that companies close because they are no longer profitable, leading to a group of informal miners moving in to search for remaining mineral deposits. There are an estimated 6,000 abandoned mines in South Africa.

South Africa's government has taken a hard line against these groups, known as "zama zama", which means "liars" in Zulu and have long been a problem for authorities. The government says they are often armed and part of a criminal gang and many are foreigners who have entered South Africa illegally from neighboring countries.

The government says they rob South Africa of more than $1 billion in gold each year.

Authorities said more than 1,500 people, the vast majority from Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Lesotho, were arrested for illegal mining in the Steelfontein region last year.

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Imre reported from Cape Town, South Africa.