Turkey mine explosion leaves at least 150 dead and hundreds trapped

A massive rescue operation has been launched to rescue hundreds of miners trapped underground after an explosion and fire in western Turkey which left at least 70 of their colleagues dead.

Fresh air was being pumped into the mine in the town of Soma, about 75 miles north-east of the Aegean coastal city of Izmir, where the local mayor said that the actual death toll was as high as 157.

Rescue teams from neighbouring regions were making their way to the site on Tuesday night while a visit to Albania was cancelled by Turkey's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, following the accident in the western province of Manis.

Twenty people initially made it out of the privately owned mine, where a power distribution unit was said to have exploded, but authorities said that between 200 and 300 workers were still underground.

The accident happened about 2km inside the mine, according to Turkey's NTV television, while the rescue efforts were being hampered by the fact that it was made up of tunnels that were kilometres long.

 Medics, ambulances and relatives at the entrance of the mine. Photograph: AP

 Medics, ambulances and relatives at the entrance of the mine. Photograph: AP

Television footage showed people cheering and applauding as some trapped workers emerged out of the mine, helped by rescuers, their faces and hard hats covered in soot. One wiped away tears on his jacket, another smiled, waved and flashed a "thumbs up" sign at onlookers. Meanwhile, hundreds of relatives of miners who were working at the site gathered outside the mine and the hospital in Soma, which is at the centre of a coal-mining community.

The Turkish energy minister, Taner Yildiz, called the situation "worrisome" and said rescue efforts "must be completed by the morning".

"Time is working against us," said Yildiz, adding that some 400 rescuers were involved in the operation.

"We are faced with carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide poisoning," he said.

Yildiz, who opened the mine 10 months ago said some of the workers were 420 metres deep inside the mine.

 A miner is brought out after the explosion. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The Turkish miner's union president, Vedat Ünal, said that 600 miners were working on the premises at the time of the accident, although there was no confirmation of the exact number who were trapped underground.

He added: "Every worker has a gas mask. Those masks provide oxygen. But we don't know how long they will last."

Mining accidents are common in Turkey, which is plagued by poor safety conditions. The country's worst mining disaster was a 1992 gas explosion which killed 270 workers near the Black Sea port of Zonguldak.

Miners' representatives said that accidents such as the latest one would increase due to privatisations, the increasing employment of subcontractors and a lack of strong unions, all of which they said had led to massive pressure on workers to produce as much as possible for as little cost as possible.

"And because of weak unions it is impossible to counter this pressure," said Tayfun Görgün, the head of one of the mining unions.

Soma Komur Isletmeleri AS, which owns the mine, confirmed that a number of its workers were killed but did not say how many. It said the accident occurred despite "[the] highest safety measures and constant controls" and an investigation was being launched. Turkey's main opposition Republican People's party (CHP) sought to establish a parliamentary inquiry last year about safety issues in relation to the mining company but the bid was rejected last year.

Erdogan said in televised comments: "Evacuation efforts are under way. I hope that we are able to rescue them." His office said that Erdogan postponed a one-day visit to Albania on Wednesday over the accident.

Determining how many workers were trapped underground was made more difficult by the fact that the accident occurred during a shift change. But while Turkey's disaster management agency put the death toll at 70, local officials put the actual number of dead at a much higher figure amid fears that some had also died as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning. Around 580 miners were thought to have been underground at the time.

Source: The Guardian (UK.)