KARACHI, Pakistan

At least 12 miners were killed and another eight rescued after an explosion in a coal mine in southwest Pakistan on Wednesday, officials said.

The incident, the latest in a series of similar accidents, took place in the Harnai district of southwestern Balochistan province, Abdul Ghani Baloch, the provincial chief inspector of mines told reporters.

Some 20 miners were trapped in the mine when a methane gas explosion took place overnight, he said, adding that 12 bodies have been recovered, while survivors were transported to the hospital.

Pakistan has a long history of coal mine accidents, mainly because of poor infrastructure and a lack of safety standards.

In May 2018, some 23 miners were killed in two coal mine blasts near the provincial capital Quetta.

The annual death toll from coal mine accidents averages around 200, according to the Pakistan Central Mines Labor Federation

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in a statement, expressed “profound sorrow and grief over the loss of precious lives.”