Rescuers reach alive miner trapped down the shaft at Zofiówka mine

Ratownicy górniczy w kopalni Zofiówka
Mieszkańcy palą znicze przed kopalnią w Zofiówce
Źródło: TVN24

Polish rescue workers have reached a miner trapped underground since a tremor shook the Borynia-Zofiówka mine in southern Poland on Saturday morning, an official at the pit said on Tuesday. Later on Tuesday, a mine director Marcin Gołębiowski informed that the remaining miners had been found and were being transported to the surface. He did not specify, however, whether they were alive or not.

Two mines belonging to state-owned JSW have seen fatal accidents over the past week, and Poland's prime minister has said safety standards will be checked. "Just before 3 p.m. a team from the Central Mine Rescue Station reached one of the victims," Marcin Gołębiowski, a director at the mine was quoted as saying by state-run news agency PAP.

Rescuers in Zofiówka Coal Mine
Rescuers in Zofiówka Coal Mine
Źródło: JSW/Dawid Lach

"Currently, an attempt is being made to get him out from under the water and transport the injured man to the base, and then to the surface," he added. Of 52 workers who were in the mine when the tremor happened, 42 managed to escape themselves. Six of those left trapped underground have since been found dead. Gołębiowski informed later on Tuesday that the remaining miners had been found and were being transported to the surface. He did not specify whether they were alive or not, revealing only that the rescuers were not able to identify the found persons.

Candles lit in front of Zofiówka Coal Mine
Candles lit in front of Zofiówka Coal Mine
Źródło: PAP/Zbigniew Meissner
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