Rescuers recover final body from Turkish mine disaster

By Fecri Barlik

SIIRT, Turkey (AA) – Rescuers at the scene of a mine collapse in southeastern Turkey found the remains of a final missing worker on Monday, bringing the death toll to 16.

An operation had been underway at the Madenkoy copper mine in Siirt province, where heavy rains were believed to have caused a landslide on Nov. 17.

The mine’s operating manager was remanded in custody two days later, accused of negligence related to safety regulations.

Madenkoy mine is run by Park Elektrik, a member of the Ciner Group which has operated the facility since 2006.

Other serious accidents have beset Turkey’s mining industry in the past.

In May 2014, 301 coal miners were killed in the Soma mine in western Turkey -- the country’s worst mining disaster.

In late November this year, an incident took place at a privately-owned mine in the Kilimli district of Zonguldak province, a region on Turkey’s Black Sea coast. The body of a 34-year-old mine worker was recovered, 10 hours after the Kilimli mine collapse.

This October, 18 miners died when a coal mine in Ermenek, central Turkey, flooded.