At least 19 dead in methane leak that causes explosion in coal mine in eastern Iran, reports state television – 102.3 KRMG

TEHRAN, Iran — (AP) — A methane leak triggered an explosion at a coal mine in eastern Iran that killed at least 19 people and injured 17 others, Iranian state television reported Sunday.

According to the report, the deaths occurred in a coal mine in Tabas, about 540 kilometers southeast of the capital Tehran.

Authorities said they had sent emergency personnel to the area after the explosion late Saturday. Around 70 people were working there at the time of the explosion.

Oil producer Iran is also rich in a variety of minerals. Iran consumes around 3.5 million tons of coal annually, but only extracts about 1.8 million tons per year from its mines. The rest is imported and often used in the country's steel mills.

This is not the first disaster to hit Iran's mining industry. In 2013, 11 workers were killed in two separate mining accidents. In 2009, 20 workers died in several incidents. In 2017, an explosion in a coal mine killed at least 42 people.

Lax safety standards and inadequate rescue services in mining areas are often blamed for the many deaths.

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