Death toll from Mohmand marble mine incident rises to 22

MOHMAND: The death toll from the tragic incident of a rockslide in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Mohmand district reached 22 after more bodies were retrieved from under the rubble, Geo News reported on Tuesday, quoting rescue officials.

According to the TV report, nine bodies of the labourers working at the marble mine in KP’s remote area have so far been pulled out during the rescue operation which restarted earlier today.

District Police Officer Mohmand Tariq Habib said that several more are feared trapped under the debris, adding that rescue operation has been started after it was stopped due to darkness at around 2am.

Heavy machinery and manpower were dispatched to the area for assistance in the rescue operation.

On Monday, six mines at the Ziarat Ghar mountain had collapsed killing 12 miners and injuring several others.

Deputy Commissioner Iftikhar Alam had said that he feared the number of casualties from the mine collapse would rise. The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) had been asked to provide heavy machinery for rescue operations.

Fawad calls for implementation of labour laws

Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry pointed out that the condition for the labourers was very bad.

The minister urged the provincial government to implement labour laws in the province and hoped that KP government will stand with the families of the deceased labourers.

Shehbaz sympathises with families of labourers

PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif sympathised with the families of the labourers and expressed hope that the government would help them in their time of need.

"Heartfelt sympathise with the bereaved families who lost their loved ones in rockslide incident in Mohmand district. Hope the govt will extend its help and financial assistance to the labourers’ families in these difficult times," he said.

Asad Umar calls for thorough investigation

Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar called for a thorough investigation of the incident and stressed that the people responsible should be held accountable.

"Tragic death of 21 workers in ziarat mines in Mohmand district, due to collapse of mines. Clearly either the safety rules are inadequate or violation of safety protocols was taking place. In either case, the investigation must be carried out and those responsible held to account," the minister wrote on Twitter.