At least 28 people have been killed in a coal mine explosion in Turkey – with dozens more still trapped inside.
The state-owned TTK Amasra Muessese Mudurlugu mine in Amasra town was rocked by the blast at around 6.45pm on Friday, with emergency services working through the night to bring trapped workers to the surface.
Some 110 people were in the mine at the time of the eruption, which the country’s energy minister said was caused by firedamp – a reference to flammable gases found at the site.
So far, the government has confirmed the deaths of 25 people. 17 other people were injured, eight of them in intensive care.
A worker got out of the mine on his own and described feeling “pressure” but seeing nothing because of the dust and dirt, the DHA news agency reported.
Most workers were able to evacuate after the blast, but 49 were trapped in a high-risk area of the facility, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said.
“We are facing an image that we really regret, that we regret having to share (with the public),” Mr Soylu said.
Several rescue teams have been dispatched to the area, including from neighboring provinces, Turkey’s disaster management agency AFAD added.
Relatives and friends of mine workers also gathered outside the facility as they awaited news of their loved ones.
President cancels planned trip to deal with mine incident
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced that he is canceling a planned visit to the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and will instead travel to Amasra to coordinate the rescue operation himself.
He said three prosecutors had been assigned to investigate the incident.
“Our hope is that the loss of life does not increase further, that our miners are saved,” Erdogan said in a statement.
“All our efforts are in this direction.”
In Turkey worst mining disastera total of 301 people died in 2014 in a fire inside a coal mine in the western town of Soma.
