At least three miners died while two others were rescued when a coal mine collapsed in Balochistan’s Dukki district on Thursday morning, according to District Police Officer (DPO) Sardar Hashim.
DPO Hashim said the incident took place in the Chamlang area of the district where five coal miners were working thousands of feet deep inside the mine. As soon as the coal mine suddenly collapsed, a large number of miners reached the site of the incident and launched their own rescue effort to ensure the safe recovery of the those trapped inside.
Only two miners could be rescued alive from the collapsed mine while bodies of the three deceased miners have also been recovered, the police official added.
While complaining about the lack of facilities for coal miners, Balochistan coal miners’ association member Bakht Nawab said, “There are almost no safety arrangements for life security of miners.”
According to the Mines Act of 1923, extensive safety and labour welfare regime must be enacted and observed at all mines.
Sultan Muhammad Khan, the central leader of Pakistan Central Mines Labour Federation (PMCLF), said, “Rules are merely in papers rather than in practice.”
According to the PMCLF, casualties from accidents among labourers working in coal mines range from 100 to 200 every year.
Coal mining has historically been fraught with hazards, which are similar to those associated with the aftermath of natural disasters: suffocation, gas poisoning, roof collapse, rock burst, gas explosions and a plethora of lung diseases, including incurable diseases like coalworker’s pneumoconiosis, also known as black lung disease.
In the last eight years, more than 318 coal miners have been killed in the course of their employment in Balochistan.
Just in the first eight months of this year, at least 50 miners have died in the country and in August alone, 17 labourers lost their lives in two separate incidents.
In one incident, miners were digging 300 feet deep in a coal mine owned by a local company in Bolan district of the province, where they reportedly suffocated to death on account of lack of oxygen.
A separate incident occurred due to an explosion in a coal mine in the Sanjdi area, claiming the lives of 15 miners.
According to government sources, there are at least 20,000 labourers employed across Balochistan in 2,500 mines.