A Kilkenny mine worker is recovering in a Dublin hospital after being injured during an underground explosion at the Canadian-owned Lundin zinc and lead mines at Galmoy, north Co Kilkenny, last weekend.
The man, from Castlecomer, who has not been named, is understood to have lost a number of fingers when a detonator exploded.
He was taken to St Luke's Hospital in Kilkenny and later transferred to St James's Hospital in Dublin where he remains.
A Garda spokesman said the incident had occurred on Saturday morning.
The Health and Safety Authority is investigating.
Ownership of Galmoy mines passed to the Canadian company in 2005, following the merger of Arcon (a mining and exploration company formerly listed on the Irish Stock Exchange) with the Vancouver-based Lundin Mining Corporation (whose principal asset is the Zinkgruvan mine in Sweden which produces zinc, lead and silver).
Last week the company, listed on the Toronto and Stockholm stock exchanges, announced that drilling by its wholly owned subsidiary, Lundin Mining Exploration Limited, "is discovering significant new mineralisation at its Galmoy project in Ireland".
In 2004, the last year of Arcon's operations as an independent company, Galmoy mine produced approximately 69,000 tonnes of zinc and around 15,000 tonnes of lead.
Lundin also announced that it has acquired an "additional prospecting licence" in Co Longford, which it plans to explore in 2006.
:quality(70)/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/irishtimes/9ed01860-e504-4ffb-bf98-8414c5453d2e.png)