At least 11 people, including nine miners, were killed in a coal mine gas leak in Balochistan’s Quetta on Monday, the chief mines inspector said.

Abdul Ghani Baloch said that the deceased included nine labourers, one contractor, and one mine manager. The mine is in UC Singidi, which is located 40km away from Quetta.

“The accident occurred due to suffocation following a gas leak,” he said.

“All the deceased were from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swat,” Ghani said and added that bodies would be repatriated to their native areas after the funeral prayers.

Coal deposits are found in the western areas of Pakistan that sit near the Afghan border and mine accidents are common, mainly due to gas build-ups.

Mine workers have complained that a lack of safety gear and poor working conditions are the key causes of frequent accidents, labour union officials have said in the past.

In March, twelve miners were killed and eight rescued after an explosion in a coal mine in the Zardalo area of Balochistan’s Harnai district.

In December, two coal miners were killed and three injured when a fire broke out in a private mine in Balochistan’s Duki coal field.