Tunnel Collapse After Nuclear Test May Have Killed 200 in North Korea

About 100 workers at the Punggye-ri nuclear site were affected by the initial collapse, which took place around September 10

Kiyoshi Takenaka

About 100 workers at the Punggye-ri nuclear site were affected by the initial collapse, which took place around September 10

tunnel collapse after nuclear test may have killed 200 in north korea

People walk past a street monitor showing a news report about North Korea's nuclear test in Tokyo, Japan, September 3, 2017. Credit: Reuters

Tokyo: A tunnel at North Korea's nuclear test site collapsed after Pyongyang's sixth atomic test in September, possibly killing more than 200 people, Japanese broadcaster TV Asahi said on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the situation.

Reuters has not been able to verify the report.

About 100 workers at the Punggye-ri nuclear site were affected by the initial collapse, which took place around September 10, the broadcaster said.

A second collapse during a rescue operation meant it was possible the death toll could have exceeded 200, it added.

Experts have said a series of tremors and landslides near the nuclear test base probably mean the country's sixth and largest blast on September 3 has destabilised the region, and the Punggye-ri nuclear site may not be used for much longer to test nuclear weapons.

(Reuters)

This article went live on October thirty-first, two thousand seventeen, at forty-one minutes past five in the evening.

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