QUETTA: Three workers were killed in a gas explosion at a coal mine in the Degari area of Mastung district here on Tuesday.

Officials said the workers were digging in a private company mine when methane gas, which had accumulated deep inside, triggered a powerful blast that blocked the mine’s entrance, trapping three miners.

Soon after receiving information about the explosion, Levies personnel and Mines Department officials rushed to the site and launched rescue operations.

“It was methane gas that accumulated deep inside the mine which caused the powerful blast,” Ghani Baloch, the chief inspector of Mines Balochistan, said, adding that the rescue teams recovered all three bodies, which were found deep inside the mine.

“The affected mine has been closed and a formal probe has been ordered,” he said.

The bodies were shifted to Civil Hospital. The victims, hailing from Hazara Town and Marriabad areas of the provincial capital, were handed over to their families after completion of medico-legal formalities.

Accidents in coal mines are a frequent occurrence in Balochistan, where safety procedures are flouted by mine owners and miners are forced to work in perilous conditions.

In April this year, two colliers lost their lives after inhaling poisonous gas inside a coal mine in the Chamalang coal field of Duki district.

In January, 12 miners were killed after an explosion caused by methane gas in the Sanjdi coal field area, about 50 kilometres southeast of Quetta. The bodies were recovered after three days.

In March last year, 12 miners were killed and eight rescued after an explosion in a coal mine in the Zardalo area of Harnai district.

In June 2024, at least 11 people died after inhaling methane gas inside a coal mine in the Sanjdi area. The victims included nine coal miners, a coal company manager and a contractor. The mine owner was booked for alleged negligence.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2025