Toronto Star

Workers trapped after Iranian coal mine blast

Explosion kills at least 21, injures dozens, including rescuers who inhaled gas

- NASSER KARIMI THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

TEHRAN, IRAN— A large explosion struck a coal mine in northern Iran on Wednesday, killing at least 21miners and trapping several others as rescue teams worked franticall­y through the day and into the night to reach them, officials said.

Iran’s official IRNA news agency quoted Sadegh Ali Moghadam, the provincial director of disaster management, as saying that 21 bodies have been found following the explosion in Golestan province.

Moghadam warned of the “possibilit­y of the death toll rising” as authoritie­s estimate that a total of 35 miners were inside the mine at the time of the explosion.

The semi-official ISNA and Tasnim news agencies gave the same death toll. ISNA quoted Houman Hadian of the Golestan mining industry, as saying that after hours of rescue efforts, the main tunnel of the mine was opened as teams continue to try to get to the miners.

“We are trying to inject oxygen into the tunnel to increase the chances of survival for people who are trapped in the mine,” Moghadam said.

Provincial spokespers­on Ali Yazerloo said the blast happened at 12:45 p.m. local time and that the provincial governor was heading to the scene. Several officials blamed the explosion on accumulate­d gas and said it was affecting rescue efforts.

Initially, there was confusion about how many miners had been trapped.

Hossein Ahmadi, head of the provincial Red Crescent, told state TV that about 26 were believed to be trapped. But other officials provided significan­tly higher estimates, including one from Pir Hossein Kolivand, who runs Iran’s emergency department and who said as many as 80 miners could be trapped in two sections of the mine.

At least 25 people who had entered the mine to try to save those trapped had to be taken to the hospital after inhaling the gas, said Hamidreza Montazeri, the deputy head of the emergency management department in Golestan.

Hassan Sadeghlou, Golestan’s gov- ernor, told state TV that the explosion may have been caused by someone attempting to restart a lorry engine inside the mine tunnel.

“I carried two out of the mine,” an unidentifi­ed, soot-covered miner told state television earlier in the day. “It is not possible to go inside again. Oxygen tanks should be brought.”

Another miner said he feared his colleagues trapped inside may have died.

“The gas in the mine exploded and my colleagues remained in the tunnel,” he said.

Semi-official Iranian news agencies posted images online from the scene, showing ambulances and emergency workers gathered at the mouth of the mine. Some showed dazed workers, covered in coal dust, being helped by bystanders or lying on the ground as rescuers rushed past with oxygen bottles.

More than 500 workers are employed at the Zemestanyu­rt mine, which lies 14 kilometres from Azadshahr, according to IRNA. Golestan sits along Iran’s northern border with Turkmenist­an and along the shore of the Caspian Sea.

This is not the first disaster to strike Iran’s mining industry. In 2013, 11 workers were killed in two separate incidents. In 2009, 20 workers were killed in several incidents. Lax safety standards and inadequate emergency services in mining areas are often blamed for the fatalities.

Since Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, the country has begun to renovate some of its coal mines. Delegation­s have visited Tehran from countries including the Czech Republic, hopeful for contracts.

 ?? MOSTAFA HASSANZADE­H/AFP/GETTY IMAGES ?? After an explosion at a mine in northern Golestan province, there was initial confusion about how many miners were trapped.
MOSTAFA HASSANZADE­H/AFP/GETTY IMAGES After an explosion at a mine in northern Golestan province, there was initial confusion about how many miners were trapped.

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