16 Dead, More Missing in Mine Collapse

Indian officials are running out of hope they'll find the missing miners alive
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 31, 2016 4:15 PM CST
16 Dead, 7 Missing in Indian Mine Collapse
In this photo made from video, people watch an excavator dig into a collapsed mine, Friday, Dec. 30, 2016, in the Godda district, in eastern India.   (AP Photo)

Sixteen bodies have been recovered after a mine collapsed Thursday in India, and police are losing hope for the remaining seven miners still missing, the AP reports. According to the BBC, the collapse occurred while there were at least 60 people working in the mine. Heavy smog made it impossible for rescue workers to enter the mine until Friday.

Indian officials blame poor safety at the mine, which was temporarily closed after a deadly collapse in 2012. "This is not a natural collapse. It is man made. There are no measures for safety here," Jai Prakash of India's National Disaster Response Force says. Authorities are mulling prosecutions in connection with the collapse. (More India stories.)

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