Gas leak kills 51 in Iranian coal mine

A gas leak that caused an explosion at an Iranian coal mine has killed 51 people, Iranian state media reported, adding that rescue operations for survivors from the mine were difficult.

The explosion occurred in two blocks of the Madanjoo mine in Tabas, South Khorasan, eastern Iran. The mine is operated by a local private company, Madanjoo Company.

“It is too early to draw conclusions about the incident, but my 30 years of experience suggest that a sudden gas explosion is likely the cause of this large-scale incident,” Saeed Samadi, secretary of Iran’s coal industry association, told Iranian media, as quoted by the Financial Times.

“The accident at the Tabas mine appears to have occurred above workers in one of the workshops and the explosion was so large that it caused a large number of deaths, including the death of the mine’s safety officer,” he added.

A total of 69 workers were working in the part of the mine where the explosion occurred, causing at least 34 people to suffocate, IRNA news agency reported. Rescue operations were underway, “but the reality is that it is difficult to save the injured at a depth of 700 meters diagonally and 250 meters vertically underground,” the head of the local emergency services told the official news agency.

Workers are trapped behind mine chambers that are still filled with dangerously high levels of methane, the IRNA report said.

“76 percent of the country’s coal comes from this region and about 8 to 10 big companies are working in the region, including Madanjoo company,” the governor of South Khorasan province was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian has ordered an investigation into the accident and the deployment of additional rescue services to the site of the explosion.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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