Date:15/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/15/stories/2008071553600400.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Fire in Singareni mines leads to lay off

Staff Reporter

All three wells leading to mine closed to control the fire

Crisis management: A rescue team on Monday watches from a distance smoke emanating from the air shaft well of the RK Newtek coal mine at Srirampur, where a gas leak had occurred.

ADILABAD: A gas leak that subsequently resulted in a fire in the RK Newtek mine in Srirampur area on Saturday afternoon forced the Singareni Collieries management to declare a lay off. As a precaution, the nearby RK 7 mine too was being closed, officials said.

Around Saturday afternoon, a gas leak was detected by miners and even as they were in contact with seniors above the ground, a fire broke out, forcing all 14 miners at work deep under the ground to scramble out. When rescue teams that went below ground to control the fire could not do so, they retreated and subsequently, all the three wells leading to the mine were closed. One miner who had breathing trouble was attended to.

The three wells include one that serves as an exhaust to release air from the mine, one that is used by the miners on lifts and another which is used for ‘tubs’ on rails to be sent in to cart the mined coal out. With all three wells being closed, it is presumed that the fire has died out. However, officials could not confirm it.

Miners redeployed

Following the incident a lay-off was declared. There was no confirmation about the identity of gas, but the miners who smelt it felt it could either be carbon monoxide or methane. An estimated 1,600 to 1,700 miners work in the affected mine and they are to be redeployed in other mines. Orders to this effect are expected on Tuesday.

Director of Mines Safety (DMS), Laxminarayana, led a team of safety officials to the site on Monday to assess the situation.

Besides the DMS, Director (Project and Planning) Singareni, D.L.R. Prasad, Srirampur General Manager K. Sugunakar Reddy, Ramagundam Chief General Manager A. Manohar Rao, Kothagudem General Manager Krishnaiah and Yellandu General Manager R.S. Manthri went into a huddle on Sunday to decide on the ways to face the situation and on the future of the mine.