52 feared dead after mining blast

Rescuers used shovels and bare hands yesterday to reach miners buried after a gas explosion deep in a coal mine in south-western Pakistan, lining up wooden caskets to await the bodies from an accident that left 52 feared dead.

More than 200 people stood outside the mine waiting to help or hear news from the search, but since the accident on Sunday only bodies - 27 of them - have been recovered.

"We have yet to dig out and search the remaining two wings, but there is zero per cent chance we can get anybody alive," said government mine inspector Iftikhar Ahmed.

Mr Ahmed said the mine, owned by the state-run Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation, was declared dangerous two weeks ago due to the presence of methane gas, but the warning was ignored by the contractor working it. Methane gas is a major cause of coal mine explosions worldwide. It can also cause asphyxiation.

Ghulam Mohammad, 30, who had finished a shift in the mine just hours before the explosion said he feared for the lives of his friends. "None of my five roommates have been found, dead or alive." The mine is located in Sorange in Baluchistan province.