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At least 24 miners are feared trapped following one of the deadliest mine blasts in recent years.

An explosion at a mine in eastern Iran has killed at least 30 people and injured another 17, Iranian state television reported, adding that many workers were feared trapped.

The blast took place due to a methane gas leak at a coal mine in Tabas, some 540km (335 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran, the IRNA news agency said on Sunday.

At least 69 people were working in one of the mine’s tunnels when the sudden gas leak occurred on Saturday night, according to the report.

State TV later said 24 workers were believed to be trapped inside, while 28 others were sent to hospital for treatment.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, who was preparing to travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, said he ordered all efforts be made to rescue those trapped and aid their families. He added that an investigation has been launched into the incident.

This is not the first disaster to strike Iran’s mining industry. In 2017, a coal mine explosion killed at least 42 people. In 2013, 11 workers were killed in two separate mining incidents. At least 20 workers were killed in several incidents in 2009.

Lax safety standards and inadequate emergency services in mining areas are often blamed for the deaths.