Australia: Most Trapped Miners Freed

CANBERRA, Australia – More than 40 miners who were trapped underground Wednesday by a fire in an Australian gold mine have been rescued, local media reported.

Officials said a total of 54 miners were trapped. Barrick Gold Corp. spokeswoman Selena Watt said the remainder of those miners would be brought back to the surface within hours.

Miners working at the Kanowa Belle mine near the southwestern mining town of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia state were placed in underground emergency shelters when a truck caught fire in a mine shaft Wednesday morning, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.

The fire was quickly extinguished but created health concerns because of the smoke.

Barrick said no one was injured in the incident, but the company moved all 54 miners working underground at the time of the fire into safety chambers "as a precautionary measure."

"The site mine rescue team with regional assistance is in attendance and are in the process of bringing the employees to the surface," the company said in a statement.

ABC reported that more than 40 miners had already been brought to the surface. Mine officials could not immediately be reached for comment.