Nine coal miners die in gas explosion in Colombia

The explosion is the latest accident in the locality of Sutatausa, the site of another deadly mine disaster in 2023. Nine coal miners die in gas explosion in Colombia Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Relatives of the victims rushed to the mine in Sutatausa to try and help with the rescue efforts The relative of a miner caught in the explosion at the mine in Sutatausa gestures as he speaks to the media. His face is stained with coal dust. He is wearing a black baseball cap with a white cockerel embroidered on top and a red coat. Nine people 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 said they had rescued six miners from the shafts in Sutatausa, north of the capital, Bogotá. Colombia's national mining agency said 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 said 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, said 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. 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 people died in a blast which tore through the tunnels of a complex of coal mines in the area. That explosion was caused by a build-up of methane gas, investigators said at the time. Sutatausa has been a coal-mining centre for decades with many of its residents working in the industry. Image shows a blue monster truck which has come to halt after crashing through a barrier. It is surrounded by motorcycles that have fallen to the floor. People watch on. Three dead after monster truck crashes into crowd A crowd of people, including army personnel, gather at the crash site. Some stand on the wing on the wrecked plane. Smoke rises and fires burn out of the wreckage. Death toll from Colombian military plane crash rises to 69 as search ends Two men with headlamps climb out of a mine shaft as people stand around Colombian gold miners rescued after about 18 hours trapped underground The long-running legal dispute is over a lucrative iron ore project in the top west corner of Australia. Dalradian says its planning application is for an "environmentally responsible, economically transformative underground mine". A controversial law to ease protections for the glaciers has passed, opening the doors for mining. At least 38 people were injured when the vehicle ploughed into the crowd at a show in Colombia. The portrait is part of an exhibition in Bishop Auckland of pitman painter Tom McGuinness's work. Anant Ambani - son of Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani - says he can take care of the animals roaming free since the drug lord's death. Officials say a rebel leader known as "Marlon" ordered the attack in which 20 people were killed. Political violence has escalated in Colombia ahead of next month's presidential election.