A methane gas explosion at a coal mine on the outskirts of Quetta in Pakistan's Balochistan province killed at least 26 miners on July 30, while rescue teams continued efforts to locate workers still trapped underground, Dunya News reported.

The explosion occurred at a coal mine in the Sorange area, where 42 miners were working when the blast triggered a collapse, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA). Rescue personnel have so far recovered 26 bodies, while the fate of the remaining workers remains uncertain.

Emergency teams are continuing search and rescue operations under challenging conditions in an effort to reach those believed to be trapped inside the mine.

Balochistan's Minister for Mines and Minerals, Shoaib Noshirwani, said all available resources had been deployed to support the rescue effort despite the difficult environment inside the mine.

Expressing condolences to the families of those killed, the minister announced that the provincial government would provide compensation of PKR500,000 ($1,808) to the family of each deceased miner, while injured workers would receive PKR300,000 each.

Noshirwani also said a full investigation would be launched to determine the cause of the accident and examine whether safety lapses contributed to the disaster.

Earlier, the mine owner told local media that methane gas had caused the explosion. All 42 workers at the site were reportedly from Shangla district in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Following the incident, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti ordered the Mines and Minerals Department to submit an immediate report on the accident.

Bugti directed authorities to conduct a transparent inquiry to establish the cause of the explosion and identify any negligence. He said legal action would be taken against those found responsible and instructed the department to strictly enforce mine safety regulations across all coal mining operations in the province.