Coal mine collapses in Afghanistan killing five

Reference photo. Two locals unload coal used for heating in the Sayed Karem district, Afghanistan. Photo by Fred W. Baker III, US Department of Defense.

Five miners have been killed after an 800-metre tunnel collapsed in a coal mine in Afghanistan.

The mine is located in the rural town of Dar-i-Suf, Samangan province, in the northern part of the country. According to the Associated Press, district chief Mohammad Ali Hassani said that another four people were rescued after the accident but one worker is still missing.

Hassani told the news agency that the mine was dug with little regard for safety and that those working in it were poor labourers with no other way to make a living.

Providing additional details, Afghani news site Tolo News said that a methane gas explosion caused the mine’s failure.