The number of victims of a methane explosion in a coal mine in the South Khorasan province in the east of Iran increased to 49 people.
According to the head of the Emergency Situations Department, South Khorasan Mohammed Ali Akhundi, the explosion occurred in a coal mine in the Tabas area September 21.
He specified that the number of dead increased from 38 to 49 people, and that search and rescue work to save miners, who remained blocked for a long time, did not bring positive results.
“Therefore, all miners remaining blocked are considered dead,” he said.