Two South Korean miners who were trapped inside a collapsed zinc mine in the country’s northeastern county of Bonghwa walked out alive after nine days late on Friday as the nation mourned a deadly Halloween tragedy, officials said on Saturday.
Local fire authorities said the two miners walked out of the underground mine that had collapsed after a landslide on Oct. 26, through rescue efforts that focused on drilling a hole.
The two survived by consuming instant, sweetened coffee powder and pitched a tent with plastics inside the collapsed mine to keep themselves warm, local Yonhap News reported citing rescuers.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared a week-long mourning period through Nov. 5 after 156 people killed in a crowd crush in Seoul during Halloween festivities.
(By Cynthia Kim; Editing by David Gregorio)