Uttar Pradesh mine collapse: 2 more workers found dead; toll rises to 3

District magistrate Badrinath Singh, who visited the scene, said a magisterial probe has been ordered into the cause of the collapse

Two more workers were found dead on Sunday, and nine others were believed to be trapped under the debris of a stone mine, which collapsed at Billi Markundi in Uttar Pradesh’s Sonbhadra a day earlier. One worker was confirmed dead on Saturday.

The exact number of those missing was being ascertained. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

District magistrate Badrinath Singh, who visited the scene, said a magisterial probe has been ordered into the cause of the collapse. Additional district magistrate Vagish Singh will conduct the inquiry and submit the report. Officials said action will be taken as per the probe findings.

On Saturday, Uttar Pradesh minister Sanjeev Gond said around 12 people were believed to be working at the mining site. He promised a probe and said action would be taken against those whose laxity led to the incident.

Chhotu Yadav, a worker, said his brothers Santosh Yadav and Indrajit Yadav were trapped. Another worker said that nine compressors were operating at the mine, with at least one person deployed for each.

Additional director general of police Piyush Mordia said a rescue operation was underway and efforts were going on to clear the debris and locate the trapped workers. The national and state disaster response teams, and the fire department were involved in the rescue operations even as the exact number of those missing was being ascertained.