201 dead, many trapped in Turkish coal mine

Medics place an injured miner into an ambulance after an explosion and fire at a coal mine in Soma, in western Turkey, Tuesday, May 13, 2014. An explosion and fire at a coal mine in western Turkey killed at least one miner Tuesday and left up to 300 workers trapped underground, a Turkish official said. Twenty people were rescued from the mine in the town of Soma in Manisa province but one later died in the hospital, Soma administrator Mehmet Bahattin Atci told reporters. The town is 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of Istanbul. (AP Photo/Depo Photos)

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OMA, Turkey — Turkey's energy minister says the death toll from an explosion and fire at a coal mine in western Turkey is now 201.

Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said 80 mine workers were injured and at least four of them are in serious condition.

The accident in the mine in the town of Soma some 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of Istanbul is one of the worst mining disasters in Turkish history.

Rescuers were struggling early Wednesday to reach more than 200 miners still trapped inside the coal mine. More than 360 workers have been evacuated so far.

Yildiz says the rescue effort is "reaching a critical stage" with the death toll likely to rise as time passes.

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