Picture Courtesy: DW

Forty-one people were killed following an explosion in a coal mine in northern Turkey, the country's president says. The final body was discovered today bringing the total count to 41 after the deadly blast on Friday. The interior minister said earlier that 58 people that were working in the mine when the blast went off were rescued or got out by themselves.

A Video footage showed miners emerging blackened and bleary-eyed accompanied by rescuers at the facility in Amasra, on the Black Sea coast. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been visiting the site in Bartin province, along with other ministers, and confirmed the final missing person had been found dead.

The Turkish prosecutors have launched an investigation into the cause of the explosion but initial indications were that the blast was caused by firedamp, a term referring to methane forming an explosive mixture in coal mines. The Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said there were partial collapses inside the mine, but no ongoing fires, and ventilation was working properly.

A worker who managed to escape on his own said, “There was dust and smoke and we don't know exactly what happened.” The mine belongs to the state-owned Turkish Hard Coal Enterprises.