The bodies of all four workers trapped under a tonne of sand in a foundation trench outside a water-sport shop in Randburg were excavated on Wednesday.
Johannesburg emergency services spokesperson Malcolm Midgley said emergency personnel were at the site early on Wednesday, trying to locate the workers who had been trapped under the sand since Tuesday.
”The first two bodies were found very close to each other. It appears they got trapped while they were running away as the walls collapsed,” Midgley said.
Two other workers — Moses Thobela and Anthony Pitsoyagaga — were pulled out of the sand alive on Tuesday afternoon.
Thobela and Pitsoyagaga are being treated in the Sunninghill and Olivedale hospitals and are in a stable condition.
The men were working on a construction site for Waterworld, a company that sells boats and skis, when the trench a few metres from the showroom collapsed.
About 3m of a sand ledge came crashing down on the workers, trapping them.
The search operation resumed early on Wednesday.
Teams had to erect a frame to keep the sand from caving in again while excavating the trench in search of the bodies.
Midgley said emergency services will continue working at the scene for a few more hours to ensure that there are no other workers trapped under the sand.
”We have found all the workers who were said to be trapped, but we must make sure there are no other bodies down there,” said Midgley.
Family members of the trapped workers arrived at the site shortly after the first body was found on Wednesday.
The names of the dead workers cannot be revealed yet.
Nobody from the company was available for comment. — Sapa