At least 30 people were killed after a methane leak sparked an explosion at a coal mine in eastern Iran, state media reported on Sunday.
At least 17 were injured by the explosion at a coal mine in Tabas, about 540km south-east of Tehran, while 24 miners are believed to be trapped inside.
Authorities were sending emergency personnel to the area after the blast late on Saturday, state media reported. About 70 people had been working at the mine when the explosion took place.
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, who was preparing to travel to New York for the UN General Assembly, announced that he had ordered all efforts be made to rescue those trapped and assist their families. He said an investigation into the incident had been launched.
Iran is rich in a variety of minerals. It consumes about 3.5 million tonnes of coal a year, but produces only about half of this locally. The rest is imported, often for use in the country’s steel mills.
This is not the first disaster to strike Iran’s mining industry. In 2013, 11 workers were killed in two mining incidents. In 2009, 20 workers were killed in several incidents. In 2017, a coal mine explosion killed at least 42 people.
Lax safety standards and inadequate emergency services in mining areas are often blamed for the fatalities.