Rescuers in southwestern Pakistan recover the bodies of 11 workers who died in a coal mine explosion

ISLAMABAD – Rescuers recovered the bodies of 11 miners who died last week after a methane gas explosion caused the collapse of a coal mine in southwestern Pakistan, officials said Monday.

An operation is still underway to find a 12th worker who went missing on Thursday after a mine collapsed in the town of Singidi in Balochistan province, said Abdul Ghani, a mines inspector.

He added that on Sunday, two more miners died when another mine collapsed in Harnai district of Balochistan.

Safety standards are widely ignored in Pakistan’s coal mining industry, leading to accidents and explosions that kill dozens of mine workers every year. Miners often complain that owners do not install safety equipment.

Last week, Pakistani security forces also rescued at least eight of 16 mine workers kidnapped by local militants in the restive northwest, and an operation to rescue the remaining miners is still ongoing.