Tuesday, May 13, 2014

157 Workers Confirmed Dead In Turkey Mine Explosion


Injured miner at Soma, Turkey. 13 May 2014
An explosion at a coal mine in western Turkey has left 157 workers dead and 75 injured, local officials say. Cengiz Ergun, Mayor of Manisa, cautioned that the latest death toll had not been officially confirmed.


The blast at the mine in Soma, around 120km (75 miles) northeast of the Aegean coastal city of Izmir, Turkey, has killed up to 157 miners, injured 75 and left hundreds trapped underground
Initial reports said 17 people had been killed in the explosion and ensuing fire, and many more were trapped.

It was estimated that 580 workers were underground at the time of the blast, though it is thought many of them managed to escape.

Relatives have been waiting patiently to see if there loved ones are rescued following the explosion and subsequent fire at the coal mine, which is understood to have been triggered by an electrical fault
It is not clear exactly how many are still trapped in the mine in the town of Soma, in Manisa province, about 250km (150 miles) south of Istanbul.

Large crowds of worried family members have gathered near the privately-owned mine, many in tears.

Family members of the miners trapped underground have been waiting at the top of the coal mine in Soma, Manisa, Turkey, amid the ongoing rescue operation
Energy Ministry Taner Yildiz told Turkish TV that carbon monoxide poisoning could have claimed lives.

Around 20 miners have been rescued and taken to hospital, pictured, but up to 300 remain trapped about 2km below the surface and 4km from the entrance of the mine
Energy Minister Taner Yildiz confirmed the fire was triggered by an electrical fault and that workers had been killed, but declined to say how many
Turkey's disaster and emergency management agency said around 20 people had been rescued from the site so far, 11 of them with injuries
He said that the fire had been triggered by an electrical fault.

Distressed family members and friends of the miners have been gathered at the mine in the western Turkish province of Manisa following the explosion earlier today which has killed at least four people
TV footage showed rescuers helping workers from the mine, their faces and hard-hats covered in soot and dust. Some were able to walk but others were carried on stretchers to a fleet of waiting ambulances.


Source: BBC News
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