Syed Ali Shah:
A coal mine explosion has killed 5 coal miners and 5 were rescued in the Sara Ghurga area of Quetta in the wee hours of Saturday. The miners were working deep inside the mine when there was a huge blast. All 10 coal miners were trapped to recover the miners.
Rescue workers shifted five coal mines to the Trauma Center of civil hospital Quetta for medical treatment. “Three coal miners are in critical condition and two are stable”, Waseem Baig, the Spokesman civil hospital Quetta said. Methane gas filled in the mine that caused a powerful blast, the initial investigation suggested.
The incident happened late at night
The incident happened late at night and there was no proper rescue operation to rescue the trapped miners. “Very late, the rescue teams came”, Muhammad Ikram, a coal miner told Quetta Voice via telephone. He said had there been a timely response the lives of miners would have been saved.
However, rescue workers from a private charity group reached the affected mine and launched the operation. The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) rescue team was late to rescue the trapped miners.
Blast in a #CoalMine near #Quetta #SaraGhurgaiDam… miners are appealing for support… late night… there is none for support video courtesy @SanaKhanAchakzai pic.twitter.com/PgqwRdrG4e
— Syed Ali Shah (@alishahjourno) February 4, 2022
As per the Balochistan Mines Act 1923, coal miners cannot enter mines after sunset
As per the Balochistan Mines Act 1923, coal miners cannot enter mines after sunset. However, mine owners have been violating the act, which always results in the loss of human lives. “These are killer mines”, Peer Muhammad Kakar, the central leader of mines workers association said.
Poor or no safety conditions have claimed thousands of precious human lives for the last more than a decade in Balochistan. Such incidents are the order of the day in Dukki, Harnai, Khost, Mach, Bolan, and other parts of the province, which has rich coal reservoirs.
“We demand a judicial inquiry into this incident”, Peer Muhammad Kakar stated.
