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MULTIMEDIA
May 27, 2012
 
 
 
 
 
 

Ministry to aid mine blast victims, families

Mustafa Demirel, one of the miners killed as a result of a deadly blast, was buried in his hometown.
26 February 2010 / TODAY’S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL
The Labor and Social Security Ministry will give between TL 5,000 and TL 10,000 to the families of the victims of a mine explosion in Balıkesir’s Dursunbey district on Tuesday that killed 13 workers and injured several others.
“We will give TL 10,000 to the families of the deceased miners, TL 7,000 for the miners who are receiving treatment at hospitals and TL 5,000 for the miners who were slightly injured and whose treatments are completed,” Labor and Social Security Minister Ömer Dinçer told reporters yesterday before a meeting at the Hilton İstanbul hotel.

Stating yesterday that his ministry would begin visiting the families of the victims, Dinçer said they would gather applications for additional monthly financial support from the dead miners’ families when they visit them.

Noting that a panel of experts had been convened to examine the reasons behind the incident, Dinçer said investigators have been unable to enter the mine due to an ongoing fire, adding: “The first thing we saw was that both the owners and the administrators of the mine were working more knowingly than those of other mines and that the infrastructure of the mine was better constructed. They had taken better precautions for work safety. But we cannot talk in a detailed manner since we do not know the [exact] reason for the incident.”

Dinçer further said they have been trying to adopt a new approach in the inspection system for the past year. Noting that they cannot inspect every single business, he said they have been attempting to establish awareness about work health and safety.

Four officials arrested in mine investigation

Ertan Ortaköylü, Emre Temizer and Nihat Kosova, co-partners of Şentaş Madencilik, the parent company of the mine where the incident occurred, and the mine’s chief engineer, Halil Karakılıç, were arrested and jailed on Wednesday evening.

Fire continues at the mine

A fire that started following a blast at the Balıkesir mine reportedly continued yesterday. Energy and Natural Resources Ministry Mine Affairs General Director Mehmet Hamdi Yıldırım told the Anatolia news agency that the gas accumulated in the mine was still burning yesterday. “We are waiting for the fire to extinguish. Later the cooling efforts will begin. The [extinguishing] process is expected to take at least five or six days. Gas levels are constantly measured in the mine,” he said.

 
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