Polish mine blast: 'all dead underground'

23 Nov, 2006 05:31 / Updated 17 years ago

All underground workers trapped in the blast at Halemba coal mine in the Poland are reported dead, bringing the final toll to 23. An explosion of methane trapped them on Tuesday, flooding the area and burying much of it under rubble.

More than 80 miners have died in Poland since 2003. Halemba opened nearly 50 years ago, making it one of the country's oldest. It was the scene of a 1990 explosion which killed 19. Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski visited the scene and declared a period of national mourning.