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Defense PRO, GuwahatiRescuers in India are racing to free miners trapped inside a flooded coal mine in northeastern Assam.
Three of the nine men inside are feared dead, Reuters reported, after the state government said rescue teams had seen bodies they could not reach.
The people were trapped on Monday morning after water flooded the rat mine, which is a small hole dug by hand to extract coal.
Despite the ban on such mining in India since 2014, small-scale illegal mining continues to operate in Assam and other northeastern states.
The Indian Army, which is involved in the rescue operation, said that its personnel reached the site in the morning and are assisting the authorities.
“Indian army officials have also arrived at the site to coordinate with the authorities,” he said.
The army support group includes “divers, sappers, medical personnel and necessary equipment”, it added.
On Monday evening, Assam Director General of Police GP Singh said the authorities are confirming the number of people detained.
Reports say that more than a dozen miners managed to escape and initial reports indicate that “the toll will be in the single digits”.
Defense PRO, GuwahatiThe mine is located in the mountainous area of Dima Hasao district.
The district’s top police officer, Mayank Kumar Jha, told Reuters the area was “remote” and “difficult to reach”.
Mine-related disasters are not uncommon in Northeast India.
In December 2018, at least 15 men were trapped in an illegal mine in the neighboring state of Meghalaya after water from a nearby river overflowed.
Five miners managed to escape but the rescue operation continued until the first week of March the following year. Only two bodies were found.
In January 2024, six workers died after a fire broke out in a coal mine in Nagaland state.
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