Death toll rises to 30 after methane leak causes explosion at coal mine in eastern Iran, state television reports

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A methane leak triggered an explosion at a coal mine in eastern Iran, killing at least 30 people and injuring 17 others, Iranian state media reported Sunday. Another 24 miners are believed to be trapped in the mine.

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. State television later reported that 24 people were believed to be trapped in the building.

Provincial governor Mohammad Javad Qenaat said on state television that 30 miners were killed and 17 injured.

Iran's new reformist president, Masoud Pezeshkian, preparing to travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, said he had ordered all efforts to be made to rescue those trapped and help their families. He also said an investigation into the incident had begun.

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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