A labourer working to extinguish a fire in Jharkhand lost his life on Tuesday evening when the ground collapsed, engulfing him in flames.

The tragic incident took place in a closed coal mine in Jharkhand’s Ramnagar when a group of labourers was trying to extinguish an underground fire that had been burning for the past month.

The deceased has been identified as Ravindra Mahato, was pouring water from a pipe when the ground suddenly caved in engulfing him in the flames. Another worker, Gandhi Mahato, who narrowly escaped, said that an attempt was made to pull Ravindra out using a towel, but the flames intensified, making the rescue impossible.

The work was being carried out by a contractor on behalf of Central Coalfields Limited (CCL), which had been tasked by the district administration with containing the fire.

Following the incident, villagers gathered at the site, and teams from the district administration and CCL also arrived. Rescue operations continued through the night, but the body had not been recovered by Wednesday morning.

Villagers demanded that the body be recovered immediately and compensation of Rs 1 crore be provided to the family along with a job in CCL. They warned of shutting down the CCL Rajrappa project if their demands were not met.

On Wednesday, villagers cut the power supply to the Rajrappa project, halting operations for several hours. Discussions between the villagers and CCL management were ongoing at the time of reporting.

Villagers allege that the fire had been reported to the CCL Rajrappa management prior to the incident but no preventive action was taken. They also claim that the fire-extinguishing work was conducted without adequate safety measures.

The area where the fire broke out falls on forest department land. According to locals, illegal coal mining had taken place in the past, creating multiple underground tunnels.

The fire is believed to have started in a pit left behind by coal smugglers.