KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — It's the mineral behind your phone, your car and hardware...zinc! And it's mined right here in East Tennessee, but it can come with a life-or-death risk.

"Mining is an inherently dangerous job, its one of the most dangerous job in the world," Zach Noe, a miner and volunteer with Tennessee Mine Rescue said.

They're the men and women who make up Appalachia's miners, often unseen as they work hundreds of feet below.

"I get asked all the time, I didn't know that there were mine in east Tennessee," said Tennessee Mine Rescue Director Brian Millington.

Tennessee Mine Rescue Association is a nonprofit made up of miners who specialize in rescue and recovery, They undergo federal mandated training before responding.

"Anything that can happen undersurface, can happen undergr

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