Miners Rescued from Zinc Fire

Three miners who were trapped in an underground zinc mine were rescued and taken to the surface in Tennessee, officials said.

The miners were trapped by smoke more than 800 feet underground due to a fire on Wednesday, reported the Knoxville News-Sentinel. After they spent several hours in the Young Mine, they were rescued and taken to a nearby hospital. The men did not appear to be injured.

“There were 54 miners underground,” New Market Volunteer Fire Department Capt. Sammy Solomon told the newspaper shortly after the fire department was called to the mine. “Fifty-one came out.”

The miners had been talking with local rescue workers over the phone, telling them they were trapped by smoke.

George Korda, a former spokesperson for the former owner of Young Mine, said, “At that particular mine, the complexity of trying to rescue someone at that depth is extraordinary, particularly if complicated by smoke or fire,” according to the Sentinel.