3 miners trapped in mine explosion in northern Turkey

By Ferdi Akilli and Gokhan Yilmaz

ZONGULDAK, Turkey (AA) - Three miners were trapped underground and two injured after an explosion ripped through a mine in Turkey's Black Sea region early Wednesday.

The blast took place at an unlicensed mine in Kilimli in the northern Zonguldak province.

Evren Cinemre and Adem Alibas were wounded in the explosion, likely caused by methane gas compression. They were rescued by their colleagues and taken from the mine.

With burn injuries, Cinemre and Alibas are in critical condition, according to hospital sources.

Rescue efforts are ongoing for the other three miners -- Kenan Cavus, Hasan Gencturk, and Ugur Goktas -- who are trapped around 50 meters below the surface.

“The workers were reached,” Zonguldak Governor Erdogan Bektas told reporters at the site.

The rescue team will send oxygen down and then they will be taken out, but hopes they are still alive are slim, said Bektas.

Five miners involved in rescue efforts were also hospitalized after they inhaled the explosive gas underground.

An investigation into the incident was launched, said the governor.