Indian coal mine death toll rises to 16, some still trapped

BHUBANESWAR, India, Dec 31 (Reuters) - The death toll in an Indian coal mine collapse rose to 16 on Saturday and could rise further, officials said, as some people are still feared trapped at a coalfield run by state-owned Coal India Limited. Several vehicles working at the mine were also trapped in the accident in Jharkhand state on Thursday evening at the Lalmatia mines owned by Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL), a subsidiary of the world's largest miner. "Saddened by the loss of lives at a mine in Jharkhand," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a twitter post, adding that the state government and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal were helping. The mine has an annual capacity of 17 million tonnes and accounts for about half of ECL’s coal production, he said.
At least seven people are killed and 30 trapped after a pile of waste collapses in a Coal India mine in Jharkhand.