Iran coal mine explosion toll rises to 50 as trapped miners believed to be dead

Rescue operation still under way in South Khorasan, says local official

An Iranian miner waits outside the Tabas coal mine in South Khorasan province. EPA

The death toll of Saturday’s coal mine explosion in eastern Iran has risen to 50, with miners trapped in the mine now believed to be dead.

The head of crisis management in South Khorasan province, Mohammad Ali Akhundi, told Iranian state TV on Wednesday that all miners trapped in the Tabas mine since the blast at the weekend are believed to have died. Still, rescue operations are underway.

According to authorities, the explosion at the mine in Tabas, about 540km from Tehran, was caused by a leak of methane gas. The high number of casualties was attributed to a lack of alarm systems, with components unavailable for import due to US-led sanctions.

About 70 workers were in the mine when the explosion took place, authorities said at the time. The workers were about 250 metres below the surface, cut off from rescuers by chambers that had filled up with concentrated methane gas.

“Gas accumulation in the mine” has complicated search efforts, local prosecutor Ali Nesaei said on Sunday. “The negligence and fault of the relevant agents will be dealt with,” he added.

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.