Irakli Garibashvili, Prime Minister of Georgia, on Saturday, October 14, stated that he was deeply saddened by the tragic coal mine accident which took place in Türkiye’s Bartın province on Friday and expressed his deep condolences and sympathy to the Turkish people and government as well as the families who lost their close ones and to the injured and the rescue crews.
On Friday, an explosion occurred in a coal mine in Türkiye’s northern Bartın province, killing 28 people. 150 individuals are involved in search and rescue operations.
The explosion killed 28 individuals, leaving 17 others injured and dozens of others stuck underground. Eight of those who got injured are in serious condition, said Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.
The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) stated a transformer caused the explosion.
Energy Minister Fatih Dönmez said that a suspected firedamp explosion blast occurred at around 6:15 pm (1515 GMT) on Friday.
It has been further reported that a total of 110 workers were at the mine during the time of the incident, said Minister Süleyman Soylu. He said 49 of these were in the deeper parts of the mine where the risk was more significant.
The explosion occurred at a depth of 300 meters inside a coal mine in Amasra around 6:15 pm local time (3:15 pm GMT).
Rescue teams pulled out 14 miners while at least 49 were reported to be still trapped, as per Bartin Governor Nurtaç Arslan.
Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez went to the scene soon after the incident happened.
Rescue teams from Eskişehir, Zonguldak Sakarya, Kütahya and Karabük provinces also headed to the mine for help.
Interior Minister Soylu said 28 people who either managed to crawl out on their own or were rescued by rescuers had suffered many injuries.
