3 miners killed in mine explosion in Turkey’s Zonguldak

ZONGULDAK

Three miners were killed underground and two injured after an explosion ripped through a mine in Turkey’s Black Sea region early on Nov. 21.

The blast took place at an unlicensed mine in Kilimli in the northern province of Zonguldak.

The bodies of the three miners — Kenan Çavuş, Hasan Gençtürk, and Uğur Göktaş, who were trapped around 50 meters below the surface — were taken from the underground after a ten-and-a-half hours of efforts.

Evren Cinemre and Adem Alibaş, who were wounded in the explosion likely caused by methane gas compression, were rescued by their colleagues and taken out of the mine.

Suffering from burns, Cinemre and Alibaş are in critical condition, according to hospital sources, state-run Anadolu Agency has reported.

Five miners involved in rescue efforts were also hospitalized after they inhaled the explosive gas underground.

An investigation into the incident was launched, said Zonguldak Governor Erdoğan Bektaş.

Turkey’s deadliest mining disaster occurred in May 2014, claiming the lives of 301 workers in the western town of Soma.