Pniówek Mine Tragedy: 48-Year-Old Miner Killed in Dismantling Accident

A 48-year-old locksmith lost his life on Thursday morning at the Pniówek coal mine when a component of a dismantling support slid onto him during operations at the 1000-level.

Accident at the 1000-Level

The incident occurred on Thursday, August 13, at around 10:45 AM in a dismantling chamber section located at the 1000-level. During ongoing work, one of the elements of the dismantled support slid onto the victim, as confirmed by Tomasz Siemieniec from the JSW press office.

Rescue Efforts and Investigation

Coworkers immediately initiated resuscitation efforts upon the accident. Despite the rescue actions taken, a physician who arrived at the scene pronounced the man dead, according to Tomasz Siemieniec. The victim was a 48-year-old locksmith, and the circumstances and causes of the accident are being investigated by the District Mining Office in Rybnik as well as the mine’s occupational health and safety services.

The Pniówek mine in Pawłowice belongs to Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa and primarily extracts coking coal used in steel production.

Mining Fatalities Statistics

Thursday’s incident marked the sixth fatal accident this year in hard coal mining and the eighth in Polish mining overall, with two others having occurred at surface mining operations. In the previous year, there were sixteen fatal accidents across all of Polish mining, including twelve in hard coal mines.