UPDATE - 3 miners killed in mine explosion in northern Turkey

UPDATES WITH 3 MINERS WERE KILLED; CHANGES LEDE AND TITLE

By Ferdi Akilli and Gokhan Yilmaz

ZONGULDAK, Turkey (AA) - Three miners were killed 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.

The bodies of three miners -- Kenan Cavus, Hasan Gencturk, and Ugur Goktas, who were trapped around 50 meters below the surface -- were taken from the underground after a ten-and-a-half hours of efforts.

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

Suffering from burns, Cinemre and Alibas are in critical condition, according to hospital sources.

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

An investigation into the incident was launched, said Erdogan Bektas, governor of Zonguldak.

Turkey's deadliest mining disaster occurred in May 2014, claiming the lives of 301 people in the western town of Soma.