Villages evacuated, two trapped after dam explosion in Turkey

GAZİANTEP - Doğan News Agency (DHA)

DHA photo

Two workers were left trapped under rubble after an explosion tore through a water pumping station at Hancağız Dam in the southeastern province of Gaziantep today. 
 
There were no initial reports of damage to the dam itself but officials have begun evacuating surrounding villages in case of a possible collapse.
 
Workers Davut Akın and Ökkeş Güçlü entered a 400-meter tunnel to open a main valve at a pumping station when an explosion shook the tunnel. A one-ton generator at the pumping station was torn apart and the workers were trapped under the wreckage. 
 
Officials said the explosion happened 200 meters away from the dam and that cracks formed on pipes carrying waters to agricultural fields. There is a risk that the cracks could become wide tears along the pipes, they added. 
 
The explosion was thought to have been caused by methane gas trapped in the tunnel.