POLKOWICE, Poland -- Nineteen miners were pulled alive and well from a copper mine in southern Poland on Wednesday after a small earthquake trapped them almost 2,000 feet below the surface late Tuesday.

It took seven hours to tunnel through collapsed rock to reach the miners, who were working at the Rudna copper mine in southern Poland when a small tremor trapped them there at 10:09 p.m. local time (5:09 p.m. ET) on Tuesday.

Agencja Gazeta / Reuters

Families react to the news Wednesday that 19 miners were rescued after a small earthquake trapped them some 2,000 feet below the surface at the Rudna copper mine in southern Poland.

Two were treated for minor injuries, while the others, shaken up and covered with grime after a grueling night, were on their way home.

Families of the miners, who gathered near the site, cheered when the mine's operator, KGHM, announced that all 19 were alive and were slowly being taken out through a hole dug by the rescuers.

"This was the biggest accident in KGHM history," chief executive Herbert Wirth told Reuters. "Never in our history has it happened that 19 miners were trapped with no contact."

The Rudna mine is about 250 miles southwest of the Polish capital, Warsaw.

Kacper Pempel / Reuters, file

KGHM Polkowice-Sieroszowice copper ore mine is seen in Polkowice in this July 29, 2011, file photo. Nineteen miners were trapped there Tuesday night after an earthquake caused a collapse. All were saved.

After the quake on Tuesday, workers on the surface lost contact for several hours with the trapped miners because communication lines into the shafts had been severed.

The mine is in the Silesia region, near Poland's borders with Germany and the Czech Republic. It has been in operation since 1974. State-controlled KGHM is Europe's second-biggest copper producer.

Poland has large numbers of mines, mostly in the heavily industrialized Silesia region. In 2006, a gas explosion at a coal mine in the region killed 23 miners.

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BEIJING — China says 21 coal miners have been killed and four more are missing following an accident inside a mine in the southern province of Guizhou.

The State Administration of Work Safety said Wednesday that a rescue effort had been mounted. State media reported that another 58 miners escaped the accident.

China's mines have long been the world's deadliest, although the government announced last month that the total death toll fell by more than 30 percent last year to 1,384 as a result of stricter management.

China is the world's largest producer of coal, which generates about two-thirds of its energy needs.

The Associated Press

Jorge Silva / Reuters

An aerial view shows an illegal mine in the jungle in southern Venezuela.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

An illegal miner or garimpeiro works in a mine close to the Ikabaru river in southern Venezuela.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

Rough diamonds are seen on the desk of a trader in his office in Santa Elena de Uairen in the south of Venezuela.

In the triangle that connects Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana a huge number of illegal gold and diamond prospectors — garimpeiros — dream of changing their lives overnight by finding a huge bonanza. 

Writing on Reuters' photographers blog, Jorge Silva describes his journey to document these remote mines: 

We are just north of the Amazon Basin, riding a boat on the Ikabaru River. The passengers are people who buy gold and diamonds. They stop at each of the illegal mines that appear as craters on the river’s edge. They carry small weighing scales that seem very accurate, magnifying loupes, burners to melt the gold and separate the mercury, and some large spoons to collect it.

They are also carrying bags full of cash.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

An illegal mine is seen in the southern Venezuelan state of Bolivar, near the border with Brazil.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

A man performs maintenance while sitting on the top of an Antonov An-2 aircraft before it departs with supplies to the mines, in the town of Ikabaru in the south of Venezuela.

The appeal of working in illegal mining is enormous. Four grams of gold equal an average monthly wage in Venezuela. An ounce of the metal goes for over $1,700. The gold fever is understandable if you consider that an ounce used to sell for $250 ten years ago.

But in these mines, and the towns around them, life is expensive. A bottle of water costs around $12, and a 250-liter tank of gasoline, which would cost just $5 in the rest of the country, here goes for up to $1,200. Venezuela is known for having the cheapest gasoline in the world.

Masked men stole 70 gold bars from fishing boat in Curacao

Those who can, work hard. They don’t know if they will be able to carry on. The government is threatening to clamp down on clandestine mining. Thousands of families and whole towns live off this activity, directly or indirectly.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

A garimpeiro digs with a pressure hose in Bolivar.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

Heavily armed guards hold their weapons outside a business licensed to buy rough diamonds and gold in Georgetown, the capital of Guyana.

In a city nearby, a diamond buyer adjusted the gun on his waist while he greeted a miner who brought some “rocks.” He passionately explained that diamonds are the perfect currency. “You can carry thousands of dollars in the pocket of your pants without setting off any metal detector. There are no borders for them.”

Back at the mine, Ramón walked exhausted at the end of his workday. His face, ravaged by the sun, was sprinkled with mud. When he smiled, a golden “R” became visible, inlaid in one of his front teeth. Read the full story.

Jorge Silva / Reuters

An miner named Ramon flashes a gold letter 'R' on his tooth as he smiles after working in a mine in Bolivar.

Editor's note: Images taken in November, 2012 and made available to NBC News today.

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Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A Toposa boy walks along the Singaita River where gold has been found in Namorinyang, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A Toposa woman looks for gold in the Singaita River in Namorinyang, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A man digs a hole in search of gold in Napotpot, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A Toposa boy takes a rest after digging for gold in Napotpot, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A trader weighs his gold in a shop in Kapoeta, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A Toposa girl pans for gold in the Singaita River in Namorinyang, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

Jackson Locheto from Kenya uses a gold detector in Nanakanak, South Sudan.

In South Sudan ordinary people have been extracting gold from artisanal mines and taking part in as-yet unregulated trade in the precious metal.

Reuters reports, dozens of Toposa tribesmen and women, festooned with plastic necklaces, brass piercings and beaded amulets, hack away at the red soil with metal poles and shovels, digging small craters in a boozy revelry.

"Everything is luck," said Leer Likuam on the edge of a shallow trench through a translator. On an average day he might dig up six grams, worth around 1,200 South Sudanese pounds ($270), he said. "Some days you're lucky."

Once he found a 200-gram gold nugget bigger than his thumb, boasts Likuam.

On the international market, Likuam's prize lump would fetch $11,000, an enormous sum in a country where the average teacher earns just 360 South Sudanese pounds, about $90, per month.

But now the government hopes to pass mining legislation that will formalize the industry, let them tax precious metal and mineral exports and sell concessions to large-scale investors. Read the complete article.

All images were captured by Reuters photographer Adriane Ohanesian in September and October 2012, but made available to NBC News today.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A shirt hangs in the window of a Sarko alcohol shop in Kapoeta, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A bowl holding small flakes of gold sits in the middle of Singaita River in Namorinyang, South Sudan.

Adriane Ohanesian / Reuters

A view of the Singaita River which flows down from the Lauro mountains and through Kapoeta, South Sudan.

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Siphiwe Sibeko / Reuters

Striking miners dance and cheer after they were informed of a 22 percent wage increase offer outside Lonmin's Marikana mine, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg, on Sept. 18. Striking miners at the mine said on Tuesday they accepted a management pay rise offer and would return to work on Thursday after six weeks of mining sector unrest that shook Africa's largest economy.

Siphiwe Sibeko / Reuters

Striking miners gesture after they were informed of a 22 percent wage increase offer outside Lonmin's Marikana mine, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg, on Sept. 18.

Reuters -- Striking platinum miners at Lonmin's Marikana mine in South Africa accepted a pay offer on Tuesday, ending six weeks of violent unrest that claimed 45 lives and rattled Africa's largest economy.

The strikers, grouped on a bare soccer pitch near the mine, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg, cheered when they were told that management were offering a 22 percent pay rise, and said they would return to work on Thursday.

"I am happy - and forward with the struggle," said one of the striking miners, Sithembile Sohati.

"It's a huge achievement. No union has achieved a 22 percent increase before," Zolisa Bodlani, a worker representative at Marikana, told Reuters.

Continue reading.

Related links on PhotoBlog:

• Miners gather to pray for South African shooting victim at site of violence
• Mourners pay tribute to victims of South Africa mine shooting
• South African President Jacob Zuma addresses miners following shooting
• South African women protest police shooting of striking miners
• South Africa police fire on striking miners, killing 34

Siphiwe Sibeko / Reuters

Striking miners dance and cheer after they were informed of a 22 percent wage increase offer outside Lonmin's Marikana mine, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg, on Sept. 18.

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Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

Farmers cry inside a monastery, which they are using as a protest camp, in Monywa township, Myanmar, on Sept. 12. Villagers protested against the seizing of over 7,800 acres of farmland, involving 26 villages, for a copper mine project in Sarlingyi Township in Sagaing Division, about 450 miles northwest of Yangon. The mine project is a joint venture between a Chinese company and Myanmar's military-owned Myanmar Economic Holding Limited. Some villagers say they are satisfied with the compensations paid by the mining company while some others do not want to leave their village for compensation.

Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

Villagers shout for their farms and villages during protests against the Lebadaung copper mine project in Sarlingyi township on Sept. 12.

The Associated Press reports: Students have joined farmers and other people who have been protesting the seizure of land for a copper mining project in northwestern Myanmar jointly owned by the military and a Chinese company.

The protest in Monywa in Sagaing region has been continuing since August, but expanded this week in response to the detention of its leaders, activists said Wednesday. The primary issue concerns the confiscation of nearly 8,000 acres (3,250 hectares) of land for the Monywa copper mine project, an area which includes 26 villages and several mountains.

Emboldened by Myanmar's changing political climate, farmers, villagers, factory workers and others are now staging demonstrations in various parts of the country over issues ranging from land confiscation to electricity cuts. Read the full story.

Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

Farmers look at police from inside a monastery that they are using as a protest camp in Monywa township Sept. 12.

Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

Police walk in a monastery that farmers are using as a protest camp in Monywa township Sept. 12.

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Mike Hutchings / Reuters

Mineworkers take part in a march at Lonmin's Marikana mine in South Africa's North West Province, September 5, 2012. More than 3,000 striking South African miners marched through streets near Lonmin's Marikana mine on Wednesday, the largest protest at the hot spot since police shot dead 34 of their colleagues last month. Police armed with tear gas and assault rifles deployed armoured vehicles and helicopters to keep an eye on the stick-waving protesters.

Thousands of South African miners marched near the Lonmin Marikana mine on Wednesday, demanding higher pay, according to Reuters. Police shot and killed 34 of their coworkers last month, but Wednesday's protest did not turn violent, Reuters reports:

One man at the front of the column waved a placard reading "We want 12,500 or nothing else", a reference to the group's demand for a hike in base pay to 12,500 rand ($1,500) a month, more than double their current salary.

The marchers retreated after a two-hour standoff at an entrance of Lonmin's nearby Karee mine and talks between a delegation of protesters and management. There was no violence.

The strike for the pay rise by rock drill operators and other miners is now in its fourth week and is threatening to cripple London-headquartered Lonmin. Only 4.2 percent of its shift workers reported for duty on Wednesday. Continue reading.

Kim Ludbrook / EPA

Some of the thousands of striking miners from the Lonmin platinum mine march to the gates of the Karee Mine as part of their mass action in an attempt to get high wages, Marikana, South Africa, Sept. 5. Many of the miners protesting today carried posters of their fallen comrades.

Denis Farrell / AP

Police try to prevent striking mine workers marching to the Karee shaft at the Lonmin Platinum Mine near Rustenburg, South Africa Sept, 5 to hand over a memorandum to mine management. Miners are refusing to return to work until their demands over low pay and working conditions are met.

Related links on PhotoBlog:

• Miners gather to pray for South African shooting victim at site of violence
• Mourners gather on the "Hill of Horror" at the site of mine shootings
• Mourners pay tribute to victims of South Africa mine shooting
• South African President Jacob Zuma addresses miners following shooting
• South African women protest police shooting of striking miners
• South Africa police fire on striking miners, killing 34

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Rodger Bosch / AFP - Getty Images

Mineworkers pray on Aug. 31, over the coffin containing the body of Mpuzeni Ngxande, one of the 34 striking miners that were killed by police on August 16, in front of the rocky outcrop where the men were shot, an informal settlement near the Lonmin mine in Marikana, North-West Province. Talks to end a three-week strike at South Africa's Lonmin platinum mine, where violence claimed 44 lives, have been postponed to Monday after two days of negotiations failed to broker a deal. Mine managers, unions, workers representatives and government mediators are seeking a "peace accord" after the killing of 34 striking workers two weeks ago by police -- the worst day of police violence in South Africa since the end of white-minority apartheid rule in 1994.

Reuters -- South Africa's justice minister on Friday rebuked prosecutors for charging 270 miners with the murder of 34 striking colleagues shot dead by police, saying the decision had caused "shock, panic and confusion" among the general public.

The police killing of the strikers at the Marikana mine this month was one of the worst such incidents since the end of white rule in 1994. The arrested miners have been charged under a law dating from the apartheid era under which they are deemed to have had a "common purpose" in the murder of their co-workers.

The African National Congress, whose members used to be gunned down by apartheid police at protest rallies and targeted with draconian laws, has been severely criticized for using similar tactics now that it is in power.

Read the full story.

Related links on PhotoBlog:

• Mourners gather on the "Hill of Horror" at the site of mine shootings
• Mourners pay tribute to victims of South Africa mine shooting
• South African President Jacob Zuma addresses miners following shooting
• South African women protest police shooting of striking miners
• South Africa police fire on striking miners, killing 34

Themba Hadebe / AP

Family members and colleagues of the late mine worker Andries Ntsenyeho, visit the scene of the shooting at the Lonmin Platinum Mine near Rustenburg, South Africa, on Aug. 31, after collecting his body at the morgue for a funeral. South Africa's justice minister is demanding the nation's top prosecutor explain a bizarre decision to charge 270 miners with the murders and attempted murders of 112 striking co-workers shot by the police. The Aug. 16 shootings that killed 34 and wounded 78 at London-registered Lonmin PLC platinum mine were the worst display of state violence since apartheid ended in 1994.

Themba Hadebe / AP

An unidentified woman cries as women protest against the police near the scene of the shooting of miners on Thursday at the Lonmin mine near Rustenburg, South Africa, on Aug. 17. Police chief Mangwashi Victoria Phiyega says 34 miners died and another 78 were wounded when police opened fire on strikers in one of the worst police shootings in South Africa since apartheid.

Denis Farrell / AP

An unidentified woman cries on Aug. 17, as she protests against the police opening fire Thursday and killing and injuring striking mine workers at the Lonmin Platinum Mine near Rustenburg, South Africa.

Reuters -- MARIKANA, South Africa -- The police killing of 34 striking platinum miners in the bloodiest security operation since the end of white rule cut to the quick of South Africa's psyche on Friday, with searching questions asked of its post-apartheid soul.

Newspaper headlines screamed "Bloodbath", "Killing Field" and "Mine Slaughter", with graphic photographs of heavily armed white and black police officers walking casually past the bloodied corpses of black men lying crumpled in the dust.

The images, along with Reuters television footage of a phalanx of officers opening up with automatic weapons on a small group of men in blankets and t-shirts, rekindled uncomfortable memories of South Africa's racist past.

Police chief Riah Phiyega confirmed 34 dead and 78 injured after officers moved in against 3,000 striking drill operators armed with machetes and sticks and massed on a rocky outcrop at the mine, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg.

Continue reading: Mine "bloodbath" shocks post-apartheid South Africa

Related links on PhotoBlog:

• South Africa police fire on striking miners, killing 30
• South Africa police fire on striking miners, several dead

Siphiwe Sibeko / Reuters

Policemen look on as women carrying placards chant slogans in protest against the killing of miners by South African police on Thursday, outside a South African mine in Rustenburg, 62 miles northwest of Johannesburg, on Aug. 17. South African Police were forced to open fire to protect themselves from charging armed protesters at the Marikana mine, and 34 of the protesters were killed, Police Commissioner Riah Phiyega said on Friday. She told a news conference that 78 people were injured and 259 arrested in Thursday's violence.