Kohima: Six coal miners were killed, and four others were injured in an illegal coal mining tragedy in Nagaland’s Ruchan village, about 35KM away from Bhandari, under Wokha district.
The incident which took place near the Assam border was reported at around 1PM on Thursday when coal miners were working in a 400ft rat hole mine.
Medical Officer at Bhandari, Dr Renathung Kithan, confirmed with EastMojo that the families of the deceased had claimed the bodies by the time the residents were alerted about the tragedy.
Those injured were also transferred to a private hospital in Dimapur for treatment. According to Kithan, the residents were informed about the incident at around 3:00PM.
According to Kithan, it was suspected that a short circuit had sparked the blast at the site when miners were carrying out drilling work.
Among those who were charred to death, five were identified as Nepali while one was a resident of Assam.
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Without a license, the coal mine began operations with the partnership of four owners-two locals and two from Assam.
The district administration and the police along with a medical team inspected the site of blast. Further details are awaited.
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