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| Turkey coal mine explosion: Death toll rises | Turkey coal mine explosion: Death toll rises |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| An explosion at a coal mine in western Turkey has left at least 201 workers dead and scores injured, officials say. | |
| Energy Ministry Taner Yildiz said 787 people had been inside the mine at Soma in Manisa province when an electrical fault triggered the blast. | Energy Ministry Taner Yildiz said 787 people had been inside the mine at Soma in Manisa province when an electrical fault triggered the blast. |
| Rescuers are working through the night to reach hundreds more miners still trapped underground. | Rescuers are working through the night to reach hundreds more miners still trapped underground. |
| Worried relatives have gathered near the privately owned mine, about 450km (280 miles) west of the capital Ankara. | Worried relatives have gathered near the privately owned mine, about 450km (280 miles) west of the capital Ankara. |
| Mr Yildiz confirmed the latest death toll on Turkish TV and said some 80 people had been injured. | Mr Yildiz confirmed the latest death toll on Turkish TV and said some 80 people had been injured. |
| He said that of the workers inside the mine at the time of the accident, only about 360 of them - including those killed - had been accounted for. | He said that of the workers inside the mine at the time of the accident, only about 360 of them - including those killed - had been accounted for. |
| Mr Yildiz said that carbon monoxide poisoning had claimed many lives. Oxygen was being pumped into the mine to help those still trapped, he added. | Mr Yildiz said that carbon monoxide poisoning had claimed many lives. Oxygen was being pumped into the mine to help those still trapped, he added. |
| The electrical fault triggered a power cut, making the mine cages unusable. Those trapped are reported to be 2km (1.2 miles) below the surface and 4km from the mine entrance. | The electrical fault triggered a power cut, making the mine cages unusable. Those trapped are reported to be 2km (1.2 miles) below the surface and 4km from the mine entrance. |
| The blast happened at about 12:30 GMT on Tuesday. Initial reports said 17 people had died but the death toll leapt later in the day. | The blast happened at about 12:30 GMT on Tuesday. Initial reports said 17 people had died but the death toll leapt later in the day. |
| TV footage showed rescuers helping workers from the mine, their faces and hard-hats covered in soot and dust. Some were carried on stretchers to waiting ambulances. | TV footage showed rescuers helping workers from the mine, their faces and hard-hats covered in soot and dust. Some were carried on stretchers to waiting ambulances. |
| Police were keeping the crowds back to allow emergency services in and out of the area. | Police were keeping the crowds back to allow emergency services in and out of the area. |
| Sena Isbiler, a mother of one of the miners, stood on top of piles of wood, anxiously craning her neck to see those being led out of the mine. | |
| "I have been waiting for my son since early afternoon," she told AFP news agency. "I haven't heard anything about him yet." | |
| Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has postponed a trip to Albania over the accident and is to visit Soma instead, his office said. | Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has postponed a trip to Albania over the accident and is to visit Soma instead, his office said. |
| The mine's owners, Soma Komur Isletmeleri, said an investigation was under way but the accident occurred despite the "highest safety measures and constant controls". | The mine's owners, Soma Komur Isletmeleri, said an investigation was under way but the accident occurred despite the "highest safety measures and constant controls". |
| "Our main priority is to get our workers out so that they may be reunited with their loved ones," the owners said in a statement. | "Our main priority is to get our workers out so that they may be reunited with their loved ones," the owners said in a statement. |
| Lignite coal mining is a major industry in the Soma area, helping to supply a nearby lignite-fired thermal power plant. | Lignite coal mining is a major industry in the Soma area, helping to supply a nearby lignite-fired thermal power plant. |
| Analysts say the safety record of Turkey's coal mines lags behind that of most industrial nations. | Analysts say the safety record of Turkey's coal mines lags behind that of most industrial nations. |
| The country's worst mining disaster was in 1992, when 270 miners were killed near Zonguldak, on the Black Sea. | The country's worst mining disaster was in 1992, when 270 miners were killed near Zonguldak, on the Black Sea. |