Missing miner

Numerous injured in mining accident in Poland

At least 17 miners were injured in a mining accident in Poland.(Bild: AP/Katarzyna Zaremba-Majcher)

At around 8.16 a.m. on Thursday, a mining accident occurred in Rydultowy, Silesia (Poland). One miner is still missing, at least 17 others were injured and taken to hospital. A total of 78 miners were working at the time of the accident.

The rockfall was recorded at 1150 meters underground. The rescue teams were able to bring 76 miners to safety in the course of the afternoon, but initially had no contact with two others. On Thursday evening, they finally reached one of them. He was brought to the surface and then examined, said the director of the responsible mining authority.

Search interrupted
The search for the second missing person was initially interrupted due to further seismic activity. Rockbursts are sudden movements and collapses in rock cavities that are not caused by tectonically triggered earthquakes. They are often caused by blasting in mining. Rockbursts are difficult to predict and are therefore a major safety risk for miners and people living in the areas.