Incident at 4.5 Mtpa Knurow-Szczyglowice Mine Injures Several, Kills One
A coal miner has died following a fire at the Knurow-Szczyglowice colliery in southern Poland, hospital authorities confirmed Thursday.
The incident occurred Wednesday, roughly 850 meters (2,800 feet) underground, when methane ignited, injuring 16 miners. Nine workers suffered severe burns and were transported to a specialist hospital in Siemianowice Slaskie, while five others received treatment at different facilities. Wojciech Smetek, spokesperson for the Siemianowice Slaskie hospital, announced the death of one miner. The condition of the other injured workers remains under observation.
The Knurow-Szczyglowice colliery, which produces 4 to 4.5 million tonnes of metallurgical coal annually, is a significant supplier to the domestic steelmaking industry in Poland.
This incident marks the fourth fire-related mining accident globally in the past seven months, potentially affecting as much as 16 Mtpa of hard coking coal production, and highlighting the fact that metallurgical coal extraction is becoming increasingly challenging as operations target deeper reserves under more difficult conditions.
Investigations into the blaze are ongoing.
