QUETTA: The bodies of five more miners, who were trapped in a coal mine that caved in following a methane gas explosion on Sunday, were retrieved on Tuesday.

This brings the final death toll in the mine tragedy in the Sanjdi area to 15, as according to officials no other miner or volunteer is left in the mine.

Thirteen labourers were working in the 400-foot-deep mine when its major portion collapsed after the explosion on Sunday. All the 13 miners were trapped under the rubble when volunteers laun­ched rescue work.

Of the five volunteers, who went into the mine for rescue, two died on Monday due to accumulation of poisonous methane gas inside the mine. The bodies of eight miners and the two rescuers were retrieved during a larger rescue operation. Three volunteers were also shifted to Quetta Civil Hospital in critical condition.

“The remaining five miners could not be saved despite rescue efforts,” said Chief Inspector (mines) Iftikhar Ahmed on Tuesday.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2018