WARSAW, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- At least eight Polish miners were killed in a methane gas explosion in a coal mine in southern Poland on Tuesday evening.

    The explosion took place at 1,030 meters underground in the Halemba coal mine in Ruda Slaska, and eight miners managed to flee while 23 others were trapped.

    Grzegorz Pawlaszek, chairman of the Weglowa company in charge of the mine, told the PAP news agency that eight Polish miners had been found dead.

    Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski has already visited the spot to oversee the rescue work.

    The Weglowa company spokesman, Zbiegniew Madej, said the searchand rescue was very difficult. Furthermore, as the ventilation facilities were destroyed, the miners still buried underground were in a very dangerous situation. However, the rescuers would never give up their efforts.

    According to reports, it is the largest mine accident in Poland this year, adding the number of miners killed this year to 28.