Defense PRO, Guwahati
Miners were trapped when water flooded the mine
In India, rescuers are racing against time to free miners trapped in a coal mine in the northeastern state of Assam.
Three of the nine men inside are believed to have died, Reuters reported, after the state government said rescue teams spotted some bodies they were unable to reach.
The men were trapped Monday morning after water flooded the rat mine, a narrow hole dug by hand to extract coal.
Despite a ban on this type of mining in India since 2014, small-scale illegal mines continue to be operational in Assam and other northeastern states.
Divers, helicopters and engineers have been deployed to help rescue the trapped men, and state and national disaster response forces are also assisting in the effort.
On Monday evening, Assam Director General of Police GP Singh had said authorities were in the process of ascertaining the exact number of people trapped.
Reports indicated that more than a dozen miners had managed to escape and initial reports suggested that “the numbers would be in the single digits”.
Defense PRO, Guwahati
Divers and engineers deployed to help rescue trapped men
Defense PRO, Guwahati
The disaster site is a remote mountainous region
The mine is located in the hilly area of Dima Hasao district.
A senior police official in the district, Mayank Kumar Jha, told Reuters the area was very “isolated” and “difficult to reach”.
Mine-related disasters are not uncommon in northeast India.
In December 2018, at least 15 men were trapped in an illegal mine in neighboring Meghalaya state after waters from a nearby river flooded it.
Five miners managed to escape, but efforts to rescue the others continued until the first week of March the following year. Only two bodies were found.
In January 2024, six workers were killed after a fire broke out at a coal mine in Nagaland state.
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