Coalmine explosion near Quetta claims 12 lives
Rescue operation is under way to retrieve five miners trapped under the rubble
August 13, 2018
QUETTA: At least 12 workers lost their lives in a coalmine explosion in Quetta district’s Sanjdi area on Monday.
16 workers who got unconscious during the rescue process have been taken out, while a rescue operation is under way to retrieve five miners trapped under the rubble.
Earlier in the day, bodies of eight workers were pulled out from the collapsed coalmine. Balochistan Chief Inspector of Mines Iftikhar Ahmed had confirmed seven bodies were recovered.
Later on, body of another worker was recovered from the debris.
Initially 13 miners were trapped thousands of feet underground on Sunday night when an explosion caused the mine to cave in.
Rescue work was halted after eight to ten rescue workers fainted during the process.
It was unclear what caused the explosion in the Sanjdi mine, situated 70 kilometres away from Quetta, Deputy Commissioner Captain (retd) Tahir Zafar Abbasi said. The pit workers were in a tunnel at a depth of some 4,000 feet.
Accidents, especially those with fatalities, in Pakistan's coalmines are becoming commonplace, highlighting the need for better labour protections.
Numerous workers have lost their lives or suffered a physical disability in incidents in the mines.
On June 3, four labourers died after getting trapped under the debris following a gas explosion in a mine in the same area, Sanjdi.
Prior to that, on May 6, at least 23 miners were killed when two coal mines collapsed near Quetta. The first accident had occurred in Marwaarh, 45 kilometres east of Quetta due to a gas explosion.
Later in the day, another coal mine collapsed in Sooranj, in which seven miners were killed. Two were rescued in an unconscious state, while bodies of two miners were recovered later.
