Methane gas leak in a coal mine near Quetta resulted in the deaths of 11 people on Monday. The incident occurred in the Sanjdi area, 50km from Quetta. The victims included nine coal miners, a manager from the coal company, and a contractor.
“The coal miners were working around 1,500 feet deep in the mine when the gas eruption started and quickly spread to the place. All the coal miners fell unconscious,” said Abdul Ghani Shahwani, Chief Inspector of Mines in Balochistan.
These workers, along with the manager and contractor, entered the mine at about 5 pm. After one and a half hours, no signal came from inside. Rescue teams from the Mines Department hurried to the site. When rescuers reached inside after taking safety measures and ventilating the gas, nobody was found alive.
“All the nine miners and two others were found dead deep inside the mine,” the official confirmed. The bodies were moved to a nearby health facility where doctors confirmed their deaths.
The mine belonged to the United Coal Mining Company. All the miners who died were from Swat. Authorities have sealed the coal mine and launched an inquiry into the incident.
Later, enraged locals carrying the bodies held a protest rally and a sit-in in front of the DC office.
This methane gas leak tragedy underscores the urgent need for enhanced safety measures in mining operations to prevent such disasters in the future.
