A blast at a mine in Spain’s northern Asturias region has killed at least five workers and injured four others, according to local emergency services.
The accident occurred on Monday morning at the Cerredo mine in Degana, located about 450km (280 miles) northwest of Madrid. The blast killed five people from the neighboring Leon region, aged between 32 and 54 years old.
Adriana Lastra, a representative of the central government in Asturias, told reporters at the scene that initial indications suggested the blast may have been caused by methane forming an explosive mixture in the mine, a phenomenon known as firedamp.
“Police are already investigating what happened, they are already at the scene,” said Lastra.
The injured workers were taken to hospitals in nearby cities, two of them by helicopter. They suffered burns and, in one case, a head injury.
Local newspaper La Voz de Asturias reported that the mine is owned by a newly created local company, Blue Solving, which was attempting to repurpose the site for the extraction of “high-performance minerals” for industrial use.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez sent his “sincere condolences” to the families of the victims and wished a “speedy recovery” to the injured in a message posted on X.
The head of the regional government of Asturias, Adrian Barbon, declared two days of mourning “as a sign of respect for the deceased.”
Mining has long been a major industry in Asturias, a densely forested mountainous region.
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