At Least 22 Workers Dead in Mine Explosion in Turkey... Some Still Trapped

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] An explosion at a coal mine in the northern region of T?rkiye (Turkey) has resulted in the deaths of more than twenty workers.

According to major foreign media on the 15th (local time), an explosion occurred around 6:45 PM the previous day at a mine in the Amasra area along the Black Sea coast, where 110 people were working. So far, at least 22 people have been confirmed dead from the incident. Fahrettin Koca, T?rkiye's Minister of Health, stated that among the rescued injured, eight are in critical condition.

Dozens of workers inside the mine evacuated immediately after the explosion, but rocks surrounding the tunnel collapsed, trapping 49 workers at a depth of 300 to 350 meters underground. The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority of T?rkiye (AFAD) deployed about 70 rescue personnel to the site and managed to rescue some of the trapped workers, but a significant number remain underground. Local authorities estimate that the explosion was caused by a fire igniting flammable methane gas in the mine.

President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an issued a statement on Twitter, saying, "I hope the number of casualties does not increase further and that our miners are found alive."