Explosion at Mine in Northern Iran Traps Dozens

TEHRAN — Dozens of miners were trapped on Wednesday after a large explosion at a coal mine in northern Iran, state-run news media reported.

Ambulances, helicopters and other rescue vehicles were sent to the site of the accident in the province of Golestan as the authorities tried to determine the scale of the disaster at the mine, which has more than 500 workers.

The head of the provincial emergency management department, Sadeq Ali Moghadam, said that 40 to 50 people were believed to have been trapped in the mine, which is near the town of Azadshahr, the news agency IRNA reported.

A provincial spokesman, Ali Yazerloo, said the blast took place at about 12:45 p.m. local time. Several news reports said the explosion had occurred while workers were changing shifts.