Nine People Die in Mine Explosion in Colombia

May 5, 2026, 15:13
Latin AmericaWorld

Introduction

Nine people died and six people were hurt in a coal mine explosion in Colombia.

Main Body

The accident happened on Monday at 4:00 PM. The mine is near the city of Bogotá. Fifteen people were in the mine. Nine people died. Six people survived and are now in the hospital. Experts say a gas called methane caused the explosion. The government told the mine to close old areas in April. This helps stop gas from building up. The government does not know if the mine did this. Many mines in this area are not safe. Other explosions happened in 2020 and 2023. Many workers died in those accidents too. Some mines do not have official permits.

Conclusion

Workers are still looking for the dead people. The police are checking why the mine was not safe.

Learning

🕰️ The 'Past' Story-Teller

To move to A2, you need to tell stories about things that already happened. Look at these words from the text:

  • Happened (It occurs now →\rightarrow It happened then)
  • Died (They die now →\rightarrow They died then)
  • Told (I tell you now →\rightarrow I told you then)

The Pattern: Most of the time, we just add -ed to the end of the word to push it into the past.

The 'Rule Breakers': Some words change completely. You must memorize these because they don't follow the -ed rule:

  • Tell →\rightarrow Told
  • Is/Are →\rightarrow Was/Were

🧱 Building Sentences

Notice how the text connects a person to a place:

"The mine is near the city of Bogotá."

Useful A2 Tool: "Near" Use Near when two things are close to each other.

  • Example: My house is near the park.
  • Example: The hospital is near the mine.

Vocabulary Learning

mine (n.)
a place where minerals are dug out
Example:The mine was closed after the explosion.
explosion (n.)
a sudden violent burst of noise and heat
Example:The explosion caused many injuries.
gas (n.)
a substance that can be inhaled, such as methane
Example:The gas in the mine made the explosion possible.
hospital (n.)
a place where sick people are treated
Example:The survivors were taken to the hospital.
police (n.)
people who enforce the law
Example:The police investigated why the mine was unsafe.
workers (n.)
people who do jobs, especially in a mine
Example:The workers were looking for missing colleagues.
city (n.)
a large town with many buildings
Example:The mine is near the city of Bogotá.
area (n.)
a part of a place
Example:The government closed old areas of the mine.
permit (n.)
official permission to do something
Example:Some mines do not have official permits.
accident (n.)
an unexpected event that causes damage
Example:The accident happened on Monday at 4:00 PM.