7 killed, 2 injured in coal mine explosion in N. Afghanistan

KABUL: An explosion ripped through a coal mine in northern Afghanistan’s Samangan province early Wednesday, killing at least seven workers and injuring two others, a local police official reported.

The blast, triggered by a buildup of methane gas at one of the collieries in the Dara-i-Sufi Payen district of the province, killed seven miners on the spot and injured two others, said Hashmatullah Rahmani, the provincial police spokesman.

The bodies of the trapped workers were recovered by security personnel and medical teams, said the official, adding that they have been handed over to families.

The injured have been shifted to a nearby health center for treatment, Rahmani said.

-Xinhua