Gandapur says 10 of 12 workers killed in Sanjdi coalmine explosion were from KP

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said on Saturday that 10 residents of his province were among 12 workers killed in a coalmine collapse in Sanjdi, 40 kilometres from the Balocistan capital Quetta. 

The mine in the Sanjdi coal field collapsed after a methane gas explosion on Thursday and a dozen miners were trapped inside it, according to the Balochistan mining department.

Rescue teams from the Balochistan mining department and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) recovered bodies of four miners on Friday after an hours-long operation.

In a statement issued from his office, CM Gandapur said 19 of the deceased miners hailed from the Shangla district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

“We share the grief of the bereaved families,” the chief minister was quoted as saying by his office.

On Friday, Balochistan Chief Mines Inspector Abdul Ghani said the workers had been digging coal at 4,000 feet inside the mine, adding that the entire mine had caved in due to the intensity of the gas explosion.

“The mining department will conduct a thorough investigation to assess what kind of safety measures were put in place by the private mine owners,” he said. 

At least 82 coal miners working on different projects were killed in Balochistan in 46 accidents last year, according to the Balochistan mining department.