At least 27 killed after fire in gold mine sparks explosion 300ft below ground
A fire in a gold mine in southern Peru has killed at least 27 workers, according to the mining company.
The Yanaquihua mining company said the victims were working an overnight shift for a contractor at the Sermigold mine in the Arequipa region.
A statement from the company said 175 workers had been rescued.
Government officials said the cause of the incident was under investigation with early reports saying preliminary investigations indicated an explosion might have been set off by a short circuit in a part of the mine about 100 metres below the surface.
The Public Ministry of Arequipa's Fiscal District said investigators were working to clarify what happened.
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Distraught relatives wait at the entrance of the Sermigold mine (AP)"During the investigation, the Prosecutor's Office will determine the cause of the tragic event and the responsibilities of those involved," its statement said.
Relatives of the victims were brought by buses to the mine in Yanaquihua where some sat at the entrance to the mine to wait for the bodies of their loved ones.
Marcelina Aguirre said her husband was among the dead and had told her there were risks at the mine."We are very worried, very sad we are, to lose a husband, leaving two abandoned children," she said.
Rescue workers are still combing through the rubble (Fernando Mojito/AP/REX/Shutterstock)It comes after a major mine network collapsed in neighbouring Colombia in March.
The powerful explosion tore through a series of five rural coal mines interconnected by tunnels and ventilation systems, killing at least 11 people and leaving 10 others missing, the government said.
Nine other miners who got out of the complex after the blast were taken for medical examinations.
President Gustavo Petro said on his Twitter account that rescuers were making every effort to reach the missing miners
The fire is thought to have been caused by a short circuit (AFP via Getty Images)The blast, which was attributed to a build-up of methane gas, happened Tuesday night in Sutatausa, a municipality in Cundinamarca department about 75 miles (45 miles) from the capital, Bogota.
Alvaro Farfan, captain of the Cundinamarca fire department, told local media the explosion affected five mines interconnected by tunnels, generating a "chain" blast with a wide impact.
Petro said 11 miners had been confirmed dead. Energy and Mines Minister Irene Velez said 10 people were unaccounted for.
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Six bodies had been recovered by searchers, while five others had been sighted, said Javier Pava, director of the state-run National Unit for Disaster Risk Management.
Explosions and cave-ins are common in Colombia's coal mines.
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