NONGSTOIN: One Lotar Thabah (50) of Mawphyrnai village, under Mairang in West Khasi Hills District, was killed when the stone quarry he was working in, collapsed over him.
The incident occured on Friday at around 11 am. While Thabah was killed on the spot, another miner identified as Phrolin Marbaniang sustained grievous injuries and was rushed to Mairang Civil Hospital.
In another incident, four miners died after inhailing toxic gas (sulphur dioxide) in a coal pit in South West Khasi Hills on Thursday, police said on Friday, according to an IANS report.
“We have retrieved bodies of four miners from a coal pit in Sawmer village on Friday morning,” Debangshu D. Sangma, the district police chief told IANS. However, two other miners managed to escape from the coal pit.
Though the tragedy occurred on Thursday morning, the official said, the incident came to light only by night after two miners came out alive from the pit and informed the villagers about the tragedy.
“Neither the coal miner owner nor the manager of the mining informed us. But we immediately rushed for rescue last night and retrieve the bodies of the four miners from the pit,” Sangma said.
Meanwhile, in another incident, an infant drowned in a pond at Mawthynniew village, Mairang in West Khasi Hills district.