Daijiworld Media Network - Kolkata

Kolkata, Sep 12: A tragic accident at a stone quarry in West Bengal’s Birbhum district claimed the lives of six workers and left five others seriously injured on Friday, after a large portion of the quarry collapsed on them.

The incident occurred around noon, when approximately 12 workers were engaged in stone extraction. Eyewitnesses said the collapse happened suddenly, giving the workers no time to escape. “They were buried under a mass of falling rocks,” a local told reporters. Fellow labourers from nearby quarries rushed to the site and began initial rescue efforts.

Initially, authorities confirmed five fatalities and four injuries, but later updated the figures to six dead and five hospitalised. The injured are being treated at Rampurhat Government Medical College and Hospital, where at least two are in critical condition.

A large police force from Nalhati Police Station has secured the area as tensions run high. Rescue operations are ongoing to ensure no one else remains trapped beneath the debris. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem.

The owner of the quarry is being questioned, and a formal investigation is underway. Officials are also examining whether safety norms were violated—a frequent issue in the region, which has long struggled with unregulated and illegal stone mining operations.

Local sources allege that illegal quarries often function without safety protocols, and the unauthorised stockpiling of explosives like gelatin sticks for blasting remains a major hazard in the area.