Meghalaya mine blast: 27 dead, 9 injured; probe ordered
A tragic explosion at an illegal rat-hole coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills has killed 27 workers and injured nine more.
The blast, caused by dynamite hitting a methane gas pocket on Thursday morning at Mynsyngat-Thangsko village, happened in a remote area only accessible by four-wheel drives—making rescue efforts tough and slow.
NDRF recovers bodies, searches on
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), led by H.P.S. Kandari, recovered bodies from the site, but searches are still on for any trapped miners.
Police found IED wires and detonators at the site, sparking an investigation into how explosives reached the miners.
Non-locals carrying explosives were detained at Umpleng Bazaar and 63 detonators were seized, while the state government has ordered a full probe into rat-hole mining—a dangerous practice banned since 2014.