Nine coal miners die in gas explosion in Colombia

Nine citizens have died in an explosion at a coal mine in Colombia in the latest fatal accident to hit the country’s mining sector.

Emergency workers remarked they had rescued six miners from the shafts in Sutatausa, north of the capital, Bogotá.

Colombia’s national mining agency noted a build-up of gases was thought to have caused the explosion at 16:00 (21:00 GMT) on Monday.

It also published a list of recommendations it noted it had made to the mine’s operators after an inspection less than a month ago, in which it had warned of a “potentially dangerous gas build-up”. Many mines in Colombia are operated informally and without proper safety standards.

The captain of the regional fire department, Álvaro Farfán, noted emergency workers were still working to retrieve the miners’ bodies.

Those who survived are being treated in hospital.

Mining accidents are common in Colombia.

Last July, 18 workers were rescued from an unlicensed gold mine after having been trapped underground for 18 hours due to a mechanical failure.

One of the deadliest recent incidents also unfolded in Sutatausa in 2023, when 21 citizens died in a blast which tore through the tunnels of a complex of coal mines in the area. This also touches on aspects of diplomacy.

That explosion was caused by a build-up of methane gas, investigators commented at the time.

Sutatausa has been a coal-mining centre for decades with many of its residents working in the industry.

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