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An airborne ambulance near the Rydultowy coal mine near the city of Rybnik
Officials say that two Polish coal miners remain unaccounted for and at least 15 have been injured after a powerful tremor shook the Rydultowy coal mine
Rescuers are struggling to reach dozens of others
An ambulance heads into the Rydultowy coal mine near the city of Rybnik
Rescuers transport an injured miner to an airborne ambulance near the Rydultowy coal mine near the city of Rybnik
Two Polish coal miners were unaccounted for and at least 15 were injured after a powerful tremor shook the Rydultowy coal mine about 1,200 meters (4,000 feet) underground on Thursday
Rescuers struggled to reach about two dozen others
Poland (AP) — One of the Polish coal miners who were injured when a tremor struck the Rydultowy coal mine on Thursday has died in hospital
At least 17 miners were reported injured in the accident
deep underground took place as an earthquake was registered in that part of Poland but it was not clear if the two were related
said the miner died late Thursday but provided no other details
The search for one missing miner was suspended due to the high risk of more tremors
Seventy-seven miners were brought to the surface
including 17 who were hospitalized immediately after the quake
was airlifted to a major hospital in the city of Katowice
Some of the injured were later discharged from the hospital
Earlier reports said two miners remained unaccounted for and that 76 were brought to the surface
Twenty specialized teams took part in the rescue operation in difficult conditions underground as the tremor struck about 1,200 meters (4,000 feet) below the surface
Its immediate effects inside the mine were not immediately clear
Spokeswoman for the mining group Aleksandra Wysocka-Siembiga said the accident took place at 8:16 a.m
The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center noted a magnitude 3.1 earthquake in southern Poland near the Rydultowy mine at that time
Officials initially said that 68 miners were in the area at the time
said the miners still hospitalized were in stable condition
Mass rock tremors in coal mines resulting from stress building in the rock can lead to rock bursts
or sudden ejections of rocks into the corridors and tunnels that can be dangerous to miners in the area
The Polish Coal Mining Group has suffered several deadly accidents this year
three miners died in a cave-in at the Myslowice-Wesola colliery
and one was killed at the same mine in April
Two miners lost their lives in separate accidents in 2019 and 2020 in the Rydultowy mine
which was opened in 1792 and currently employs about 2,000 miners
Coal mining is considered hazardous in Poland
where some coal mines are prone to methane gas explosions or to cave-ins
Excavation in older mines goes deep into the ground in search for coal
The coal industry is among Poland’s key employers
Olsen in Copenhagen contributed to this report