Mining Tragedy Strikes Again: Two Dead in Balochistan Coal Mine Collapse

Sunday saw another tragedy in a coal mine in Pakistan’s Balochistan province where two miners were killed when the mine collapsed, it being the second death in a mining accident in the region in under a week. The disaster happened in the Harnai district’s Khost area, in which micro-cracks appeared in the mine’s structure and suddenly it caved in while eight employees were operating inside it. While six miners were immediately evacuated, the two could not be rescued.

This incident is a repeat of another mine disaster near the Sanjdi area of Quetta where 11 miners were buried alive only two days ago. Police are continuing their efforts to remove one more body still trapped in the Sanjdi mine. The mines and minerals department has called for the closure of the Khost mine and has also opened an inquiry about the occurrence. Leaders of the Labor Federation have heavily condemned the government for not ensuring that all laid down safety measures are exercised as they have yet to visit the scene of the accident.

Other mishappens of Balochistan’s mining department are also as follows: a gas blast in Harnai’s mine in March 2023 and 12 workers died, and another tragic incident in May 2018 in which two mines of Sanjdi got collapsed and 23 workers met their fate.

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