Explosion kills 6 miners in northeastern Iran

ISTANBUL

Six miners were killed in an explosion inside a coal mine in northeastern Iran, according to local media on Monday.

Rescuers recovered the bodies of six miners killed in the explosion that took place on Sunday in Semnan province, the state news agency IRNA reported.

"An explosion occurred in the eastern Alborz coal mine at a depth of 400 meters underground due to the accumulation of gas inside a tunnel with a depth of 700 meters,” said Kamal Taherian, the director of crisis management in Semnan.

In May 2021, two miners were killed in a similar incident at the same mining site.

These explosions are common in Iran due to the aging infrastructure of the mines amid US sanctions that prevent Tehran from importing new equipment.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi