Third criminal complaint against TTK managers for Bartın mine explosion

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Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) requested that two top managers of the Turkish Hardcoal Enterprises (TTK) should be included in the investigation of the recent deadly Bartın mine explosion at once.

The Amasra mine explosion on October 14, 2022, killed 42 and injured 11 mine workers, four of whom are still in intensive care.

"The report prepared by the commission of experts revealed the basic reason for the massacre," said ÇHD in its statement, and this reason was that the necessary investments to improve the infrastructure of the mine were not made.

The association emphasized that nevertheless the liability of the managers who are responsible for infrastructure investments was being overlooked,

"They are trying to show as if it was the workers who bear the responsibility for the explosion," says the association.

Ministry: No investigation request made

General Manager and the Deputy Manager responsible for the TTK establishments were held responsible in the preliminary report of the Commission of Experts, but no investigation has started for the two.

ÇHD had filed a criminal complaint for this reason before again.

Fatih Dönmez, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources responded to a written parliamentary question on why no investigation was opened for these two top managers of TTK although their responsibility was mentioned in the expert report.

Dönmez said in response that the Amasra Prosecutor's Office had not requested any permission for a judiciary investigation for those concerned.

According to the ÇHD statement made today, on January 3 TTK officers made a presentation to the parliamentary inquiry commission constituted after the explosion.

In this presentation, the TTK officers completely overlooked the preliminary expert report and told the parliamentary commission that the deadly explosion resulted from the faults of the workers. The officers based this claim on some statements of some workers, which were not taken by the Commission of Experts in the formal investigation, but by TTK officers themselves.

In these statements by the workers, the workers were asked to define their routine blasting activities. And it was later claimed that this type of blasting which is "not complying with the rules" was the reason for the explosion.

What is also interesting, according to ÇHD, is that such blasting "not complying with the rules" mentioned in the presentation on January 3, was the same as the faults identified in the last expert report prepared on the deadly Kozlu mine explosion dated January 1, 2013, where 263 miners had lost their lives.

ÇHD made a third criminal complaint for the managers of TTK that the expert report held responsible, and requested that the prosecution should carry out its duty at once and include them in the investigation, and make sure that necessary measures are taken in relation to them.

Twenty-four people were detained, 8 including the manager of the TTK Amasra establishment have been remanded in custody,16 people were released after detainment, four with judicial review measures, in the scope of the investigation on the mine explosion.

Report by Commission of Experts

A commission of seven experts, acting as a fact-finding mission worked in order to identify the cause of the firedamp explosion in Bartın on October 14, 2022. 

The preliminary examination report of the commission listed the following as the sources of the explosion: Not making sufficient and necessary investments to discharge the gas and the dust that accumulates in the tunnels. Insufficient controls and occupational safety measures.

The report concluded that "the accident resulted from the blasting at the -320 thick lode and it was an explosion included both a firedamp and a coal dust explosion.

The preliminary report was submitted to the Prosecutor's Office on November 3, 2022. (AS/PE)