Coal mine blast claims seven lives in Colombia.

Alvaro Farfan, commander of the firefighting division in the central Cundinamarca region, announced the new toll.

On Friday, four more bodies were found, bringing the total number of fatalities from the Colombian coal mine accident to seven.

The mine in Cucunuba municipality, about 90 kilometers (55 miles) north of the country’s capital Bogota, was destroyed by the bomb overnight on Wednesday into Thursday.

Officials claimed they believed pockets of trapped gas in the mine exploded.

At first, the rescue teams discovered three bodies and four workers missing. On Friday, the bodies were eventually found.

Social media users posted videos of a sinkhole spewing smoke in the middle of the night as persons carrying flashlights and wearing civilian clothing cautiously approached.

The largest producer of coal in South America is Colombia.

In Colombia, mining accidents are common, especially in the illicit mines in Cundinamarca and other regions in the center and northeast of the nation.

Between 2011 and May 2022, the mines and energy ministry recorded 1,262 such accidents, with an average of more than 100 fatalities every year.

One of the biggest such catastrophes in recent memory in Colombia occurred in mid-March in Sutatausa municipality, also in Cundinamarca, and resulted in the death of 21 individuals.