Six feared dead in Orakzai coalmine collapse

At least 15 others killed in rain-related incidents in tribal areas, K-P, Balochistan and Punjab

QUETTA/ PESHAWAR/ ISLAMABAD/ LAHORE:

More than 40 workers were trapped inside a mine in Lower Orakzai Agency on Saturday as a heavy spell of rain claimed at least the 15 lives in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), Balochistan and tribal areas. Dozens of people were injured in rain-related incidents.

Residents of Lower Orakzai Agency told The Express Tribune that there were around 45 workers inside the coalmine, when it collapsed apparently following a heavy downpour. However, the agency’s assistant political agent said the collapse took place due to an explosion, caused by the accumulation of gas.



Rescue efforts were under way till the filing of the report. However, sources said, the rescue workers were facing difficulties due to the distance of the coalmine from the agency’s administration office.

K-P’s Health and Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai said six people were killed in the incident. “The miners belonged to Shangla,” he said. However, the political administration said it was hard to communicate with rescuers and the minister’s claim could not be verified with information on the ground.

The political agent’s office said one person was killed while eight others were injured in the incident and were rushed to the hospital. “We have managed to obtain a list of 24 people stuck in the coalmine,” an official said, adding that ambulances and rescue workers had reached the spot.

According to a National Disaster Management Authority’s (NDMA) alert, around 29 miners had been pulled out of the mine while six others were still stuck inside till Saturday night.

Separately, four people died and eight others were injured in in Bara, Khyber Agency. A woman died and four of her children were injured in Akakhel while a man died in a roof collapse in Mohmand Agency. No loss of life was reported from K-P but 10 people were injured in various parts of the province due to the rain.



Fatalities in Balochistan

At least six people were killed in various areas of Balochistan due to heavy rains. According to reports, five members of a family died in Pishin when the roof of their house collapsed. A man was also struck by lightning in Khuzdar.

Separately, the protective pilaster of a bridge fell due to flash floods in Uthal area of Balochistan, causing suspension of traffic. The rain swept away 38 cattle in Tori area and washed away a large number of onion sacks in the Kocha area of Balochistan.

According to Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) director general Zahid Saleem, at least 17 people have died across Balochitan during the recent spell of rains that stared around 12 days back.

Two deaths in Lahore, Islamabad

A 45-year-old worker died when the roof of a house collapsed in Lahore while an eight-year-old girl is believed to have drowned in a stream near Westridge area of Rawalpindi. Widespread rain and thundershowers accompanied by strong winds lashed various parts of Punjab on Saturday.

A weather report showed that scattered downpours were expected in upper K-P (Malakand, Hazara, Peshawar, Mardan, Kohat), Fata, the AJK, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Lahore and Dera Ghazi Khan. Rain and thundershowers accompanied by strong winds were expected across scattered places in Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan and at isolated places in Bahawalpur, Quetta, Zhob and Kalat.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 13^th, 2016.