Following the incident, the Supreme Leader extended his condolences and sympathized with the families of the deceased miners.
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed that “It is essential all the possible measures be taken into account to save the entrapped miners'.
“This tragic incident made me bitterly distressed and I hope for God’s providence and blessing,” the Leader added.
'Several organizations' efforts for this incident are beheld and rewarded by God, (so I call on them) to increase such efforts as much as they can,' he also said.
The number of the dead after the huge explosion in a coal mine in this northeastern Iranian province reached 22, according to the latest reports on Thursday morning.
The major explosion in Zemestanyurt coal mine in Azadshahr region occurred at the length of 1,400m of the mine's horizontal tunnel which has a total length of 1,800m and two stations, a provincial official announced here.
Any contact with the second station has been broken off, Reza Moravvati said.
According to the reports from the scene of explosion, 35 workers have been entrapped in the Azadshahr mine, the dead bodies of 22 of them have already been transferred or being transferred to the outside of the coal mine.
Zemestanyurt coal mine in Azadshahr region, situated 90 km east of the capital city of Gorgan, with over 500 miners exploded due to the increase of the methane in the mine.
The provincial officials announced three days of mourning here on the sad event.
