ADILABAD: A major disaster was averted when the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) closed down an underground mine of RK-I in the 20 B Block permanently on Saturday after carbon monoxide started leaking from it posing a grave threat to the lives of miners in Mandamarri division. The SCCL had suffered a loss of about Rs. 10 crore due its closure as it could not excavate about 80,000 tonnes of coal available in the mine.According to the SCCL officials, the miners had some breathing problem while working in the RK-I mine two days ago. Immediately, they informed the matter to the SCCL authorities who confirmed leaking of carbon monoxide from it after conducting tests. After suspending work in the mine, the SCCL authorities took measures to plug the leak of poisonous gas emitting at the rate of 22 particles per million (PPM). Initially, the Singareni authorities were confident of controlling the gas leak. But they did not succeed in their efforts as the rate of gas emission reached 70 PPM. Mandamarri area chief general manager Mallesh along with a 40-member rescue team tried to plug the leak by constructing a wall. But the gas emmission from the mine continued. After trying various options, the SCCL management has finally decided to close down the mine permanently keeping in view the safety of miners. They closed the block by constructing a wall. The miners pointed out a similar incident in RK-7 mine in Srirampur division earlier.
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