PESHAWAR: Nine labourers were killed after an explosion in a mine in Orakzai district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, BOL News reported.

The incident took place in a mine in Dowali area of lower Orakzai on Wednesday. According to Rescue 1122, the rescue operation has been completed and all the dead bodies have been recovered.

Earlier Police said the blast was caused by a gas explosion, resulting in the death of three coal mine workers and leaving three injured as well. The injured coal mine workers were shifted to Kohat divisional headquarters hospital.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif expressed his deep grief and sorrow over loss of human lives in a coal mine blast. The prime minister prayed for the high ranks of the departed souls and for the early recovery of those injured in the incident.

He also expressed sympathies with the bereaved families and directed the relevant authorities to provide all possible medical treatment to the injured people.

In February this year, at least four miners were killed and five others were injured after a gas explosion in a coal mine situated in the Zarghun Ghar area near Quetta.

Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) completed the rescue operation while the injured, who sustained burns were shifted to a nearby hospital.  Chief Inspectorate of Mines said the accumulation of methane gas likely caused the explosion.

Pakistan is rich in minerals but has a poor safety record in mines. Workers are killed by underground explosions, methane gas poisoning, suffocation or mine walls collapsing due to lax safety procedures and the unavailability of medical treatment at mining sites.

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