Dozens of workers are still trapped inside the mine |
Explosion! 25 dead in Turkey mine accident
Drama in Turkey!
At least 25 people died in a mining accident on Friday.
Another 28 people were injured after the coal mine in the north-eastern Black Sea port city of Amasra partially collapsed shortly before sunset after an explosion, said Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu (52). The incident happened at 6:15 p.m. (local time).
Rescue workers tried to get to at least 49 miners who had been trapped by the explosion on Friday evening.
According to the health minister, 149 rescue workers were at the scene of the accident in the port city of Amasra, including 31 ambulances
According to local governor Nurtac Arslan, five people were trapped at a depth of 350 meters and 44 others elsewhere at a depth of 300 meters.
The governor said 14 workers made it out of the mine under their own steam. More than 70 rescue workers penetrated 250 meters deep into the pit. However, the rescue was complicated because of the darkness.
The mine in Amasra
According to this, for reasons that have not yet been clarified, an explosion brought down the coal mine on the Black Sea. According to preliminary information, at the time of the incident there were 110 people in the mine.
First of all, the disaster protection spoke of the fact that a transformer could have exploded. The authorities later rowed back and announced that the cause of the detonation had not yet been determined. Energy Minister Fatih Dönmez spoke of a firedamp explosion.
One worker who was rescued: “There was a blast, dust was blown up, it got pitch black. We don’t know what happened.”
Earlier mining accident sparked protests
The Turkish opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu (73) was worried Twitter about the mine workers: “I wish that our mates who are trapped underground as a result of the explosion in the mining quarry in Amasra will be rescued as soon as possible.”
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (68) announced that he was following the situation and had sent several ministers to the scene of the accident.
In May 2014, Turkey experienced the worst mining accident in its history. 301 miners died in the accident at the mine in Soma in the west of the country. The tragedy sparked protests against Erdogan’s government.