Türkiye's coal mine blast leaves scores dead

The death toll after an explosion in a coal mine in Türkiye's northern Bartin province on Friday has reached 41, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said.

Erdogan, who visited the incident site in Amasra district, said on Saturday that the search and rescue operation was complete, and an investigation was underway.

Earlier, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said 58 of the 110 people working in the mine when the blast occurred were rescued by the teams or got out by themselves.

Desperate relatives had waited all night in the cold outside the mine in the town of Amasra in Bartin province, hoping for news. 

At least 110 miners were working in the shaft when the explosion occurred on Friday evening. 

Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said initial findings indicate the blast was caused by firedamp, an explosive mixture of flammable gases in mines.

Dozens of miners had been trapped underground since around 6:15 pm local time (1515GMT) on Friday, with nearly 150 rescue workers on site as part of rescue operations.

Erdogan canceled a planned trip to eastern Diyarbakir province and instead travelled to Amasra on Saturday. 

READ MORE: Mine blast in Türkiye's Bartin leaves more than two dozen dead

Eleven of the 58 rescued miners are being treated at hospitals, according to Communication Directorate Fahrettin Altun.

A miner who works the day shift said he saw the news and hurried to the site to help with the rescue.

“We saw a frightful scene, it cannot be described, it's very sad,” said Celal Kara, 40. “They're all my friends... they all had dreams," the miner of 14 years said after exiting the mine, his face covered in soot.