Five people killed in Polish coal mine, seven others trapped in shafts

An explosion at a coal mine in southern Poland on Wednesday morning, left five people dead while seven more were reportedly trapped in the mine shafts, safety officials report.

The owners of the mine, JSW (JSW.WA) in a statement, said the methane explosion at the Pniowek coal mine in Pawlowice happened shortly after midnight at a depth of 1,000 metres (3,300 feet).

The statement added that a total of 42 miners were in the area at the time, with 21 of them transported to hospital.

Poland’s Prime Minister Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki who addressed the nation on television, described the blast as a terrible tragedy.

The Prime Minister said rescue workers had been cut off by a second explosion in the mine at around 3 am and that a rescue worker was among the dead.

Read also: 18 people feared killed, 6 others trapped in China coal mine collapse

“We know that five people have died and seven people are trapped.

“This terrible tragedy shows that the life of a miner is not only a huge effort, but also a great risk.

“The whole of Poland has deep compassion and sorrow for what happened,” the Prime Minister added.

JSW said 13 teams were involved in the rescue, but that efforts had been put on hold temporarily to allow a dust barrier protecting the rescue base to be rebuilt.

The statement added that officials were trying to decide when it would be possible to enter the shafts where people were trapped.

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