Volunteers working with rescue teams said there were not believed to be any more illegal miners trapped underground in a gold mine in South Africa.
At least 78 bodies and more than 200 survivors have been recovered since Monday after a court ordered the government to facilitate rescue operations at the mine, the site of one of the most extraordinary tragedies to hit the industry.
Police said they will check that no one is there on Thursday when a rescue cage is sent down the mine.
The standoff began in November when the government ordered police to arrest any miner who surfaced, saying it was determined to end illegal mining.
This story contains video that some may find distressing.
During Tuesday's visit, police and mines ministers were insulted and asked to leave by an angry crowd that blamed the government for the deaths.
Police said that more than 1,500 miners reached the surface before the rescue operation began, Reuters reported.
However, others remained underground, either for fear of arrest or being forced to remain there because of the gangs controlling the mine.
A South African Police spokesman said of the volunteers' statement that there was no one left underground: “We will rely on the Mine Rescue Service to confirm this with their modern equipment that we hope will be able to provide assistance.” We have a picture of what is happening underground.
“The Mine Rescue Service has confirmed that they will send the cage underground in the morning to see if any illegal miners will emerge with the cage. We cannot say with certainty that the operation has been called off at this stage.”
Many mines in South Africa have been abandoned over the past three decades by companies that did not find them economically viable.
The mines have been taken over by gangs, often former employees, who sell the minerals they find on the black market.
This includes the mine in Stilfontein, about 145 kilometers (90 miles) southwest of Johannesburg, the country's largest city, which has been the focus of government efforts to crack down on the illegal industry.
The rescue cage treks down the shaft to reach dozens of miners who are believed to be at least 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) underground.
Many survivors have been without food and water since November, leaving them emaciated. They are now receiving medical care.
Authorities say they will be charged with illegal mining, trespassing and violating immigration laws, because the majority of the miners are illegal immigrants from neighboring countries.
“It is a crime against the economy, it is an attack on the economy,” Mines Minister Gwede Mantashe said on Wednesday in defense of the hardline stance against miners.
South Africa relied heavily on miners from countries such as Lesotho and Mozambique before the industry declined.
Unemployment in South Africa currently stands at more than 30% and many former miners say they have few alternative sources of income.
