A methane leak sparked an explosion at a coal mine in eastern Iran, killing at least 30 people and injuring dozens of others, state media reported Sunday.
The state-run IRNA news agency reported the new death toll after initially reporting 19 had died in the disaster.
The explosion struck a coal mine in Tabas, some 335 miles southeast of the capital, Tehran. It said authorities had sent emergency personnel to the area. Around 70 people had been working there at the time of the blast, which happened late Saturday.
State TV said 24 people were believed to be trapped inside, and 28 others who escaped were hospitalized.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, preparing to travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, said he ordered all efforts be made to rescue those trapped and help their families. He also said an investigation into the incident had begun.
Oil-producing Iran is also rich in a variety of minerals. Iran annually consumes some 3.5 million tons of coal but only extracts about 1.8 million tons from its mines per year. The rest is imported, often consumed in the country’s steel mills.
In 2013, 11 workers were killed in two mining incidents. In 2009, 20 workers were killed in several incidents. In 2017, a coal mine explosion killed at least 42 people.
Lax safety standards and inadequate emergency services in mining areas are often blamed for the fatalities.