Helpers managed to save the first of 22 miners trapped underground in eastern China for two weeks on Sunday, half of whom are still missing.
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The rescued man, “physically weak”, does not belong to the group of 10 minors with whom contact has been established from the surface, according to public television CCTV.
Public broadcaster footage showed a small forklift rising to the surface, lifted by a massive drill rig. A masked man, who appeared unable to stand, emerged accompanied by rescuers.
Since the explosion on January 10 in this gold mine in Qixia, in Shandong province (east), rescuers have been working to rescue workers stranded several hundred meters underground and threatened by rising water .
The explosion blocked the entrance to the well and cut off communications.
A minor died last week from his injuries.
Ten are about 580 meters deep and communicate by telephone with the surface. Rescuers have no news of the remaining eleven men.
Drilling operations are complicated by the geological structure of the soil, made up of particularly hard rocks like granite.
Thanks to a metal cable lowered through a conduit dug in the rock, rescuers were able to transmit food, medicine and phones to the group of miners trapped 580 meters underground. They were thus able to regain their strength.
This group, thanks to the same cable, was able to bring to the surface two written messages. These miners were particularly alarmed by a rise in underground water and reported injuries.
CCTV footage showed various locations on Sunday where drilling is being done.
Hopes are dwindling
The rescued minor was found in a section closer to the surface than the group of ten men with whom contact was made.
Another miner would be stranded on his own, 100 meters lower in the rising waters.
For the last nine miners, hopes of successfully rescuing them dwindle over the days because no contact has been established with them since the day of the explosion.
Helpers estimated Friday that at least two weeks will still be needed to release all workers despite the frantic continuation of drilling operations.
In particular, they are trying to widen one of the wells to allow workers to come to the surface while new pipes are being drilled.
While mine safety has improved significantly over the past decades, accidents still occur regularly in China, where regulations are sometimes not enforced.
In December, 23 miners were killed in a coal mine in Chongqing (southwest).