TURKEY: In Turkey’s northern Bartin province, a blast in a coal mine took the lives of 41 people. The explosion took place on Friday, which was later confirmed by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday.
Earlier, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said, “At the time of the blast, around 110 people were present at the mine, from which 58 miners had been rescued.” Among those rescued, 11 had been injured and were still receiving treatment in Bartin and Istanbul, and one was discharged.
Rescue teams have been excavating through rocks all night to try to find survivors. At the mine in Amasra, on the Black Sea coast, rescuers could be seen arriving with blackened and bleary-eyed miners. Additionally, there were relatives and friends of the missing at the mine, awaiting news of their loved ones.
According to the energy minister present at the scene, with the discovery of the most recent bodies, the extensive rescue effort is nearing its conclusion. Soylu, the interior minister, stated to reporters, “We have counted 40 dead in total. Fifty-eight miners were able to be rescued, either by themselves or thanks to rescuers.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the coal mine where the incident took place. He wrote on Twitter that the judicial authorities would investigate the explosion.
Authorities stated that Turkish prosecutors had started an inquiry into the event, although preliminary findings suggest that the explosion was brought on by firedamp, a phrase used to describe methane in coal mines.
Despite efforts to isolate the fire and cool it down following the event, which occurred 350 metres (0.2 miles) below ground, Energy Minister Fatih Donmez stated that the mine fire was well contained.
Turkish Hard Coal Enterprises, a state-owned company, owns the coal mine. In 2014, Turkey witnessed its deadliest coal mining disaster, which took the lives of 301 people in the western town of Soma.
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