‘Miraculous Survival’ Bonghwa Miner Park Jeongha Says “Accidents Can Be Prevented with Safety Measures”

Radio Interview on Rescue Experience: "Endured with Water Flowing on the Rock Wall"
"Screamed While Sleeping... Trauma Remains"

Park Jeong-ha (62), the team leader of the Seonsan team, who was trapped in the zinc mine collapse accident in Bonghwa-gun, Gyeongbuk, and was dramatically rescued on the night of the 4th after ten days, is wearing an eye patch to protect his eyesight at the hospital on the 5th. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Park Jeong-ha (62), a 27-year veteran miner and team leader who was trapped in a zinc mine collapse in Bonghwa-gun, Gyeongbuk, and survived after 221 hours, shared his thoughts after the rescue.

On the 7th, Park appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and spoke about the hardest part during the entrapment, saying, "It was hunger." He added, "I was able to avoid the cold thanks to the materials we had prepared in advance, but there was nothing to eat." He continued, "The one-third container of water we brought for drinking also ran out," and said, "I placed the water container under dripping water from the cracks in the rock walls to collect and drink it. I was okay, but a colleague vomited because the water didn't agree with him."

Earlier, Park and assistant worker Park Jang-geon (56) were trapped around 6 p.m. on the 26th of last month due to a tunnel collapse while working. He was rescued at 11:03 p.m. on the 4th, 221 hours later, at a point 295 meters underground in the tunnel, and is currently receiving treatment at Andong Hospital in Gyeongbuk.

Regarding his physical condition, Park said, "My muscles and such have improved a lot," but he also mentioned that the extreme stress he endured during the entrapment left trauma. He said, "I think I have some psychological trauma," adding, "I sometimes shout in my sleep and even act out to the point of falling off the bed."

He recalled that just before the rescue, he had fallen into a state of resignation, and the moment of the dramatic rescue remains the most memorable. He said, "Just before being rescued, (because the headlamp battery was low) I decided to check all the tunnel entrances to see if any headlamps were left. While going up, the headlamp started flickering and then completely went out." He added, "At that time, I came down, lit a fire to dry my clothes, and told my colleague for the first time, 'I think there is no hope.'"

However, "Less than 20 minutes after saying that, I heard a loud voice shouting 'blast' that I could hardly believe was real," he said. "I asked my friend (Park Jang-geon) if he heard it, but he said he didn't hear anything. Still, since I heard the blasting sound, we decided to move back and evacuate. We put on safety helmets and retreated about 10 meters when suddenly there was a bang and a flash of light."

Furthermore, Park emphasized that accidents can be prevented through safety measures and called for practical safety inspections of mines nationwide. He said, "The day before yesterday, a secretary from the presidential office came," and added, "I asked him, 'Please go and check thoroughly if it is truly safe by knocking and touching things. Don't just come and go without getting a speck of dust on your clothes. I hope you do it properly.' I requested that he report back on this." He continued, "There are many things that can prevent why I almost died and why we are exposed to such dangerous situations," and criticized, "But because inspections are superficial, unexpected accidents like this happen, don't they?"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.