SANAA, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Six people were killed and three others injured on Friday by toxic exhaust fumes from an electric generator while digging a water well in central Yemen's Ibb province, a local tribal official told Xinhua.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the victims suffocated while attempting to deepen a well more than 30 meters deep in the Yarim district.
According to the official, the fumes accumulated inside the confined space during excavation, causing casualties.
The injured suffered from asphyxiation and were rushed by residents to a nearby hospital for treatment, the official said.
Such accidents are common in rural Yemen, where aging generators and rudimentary methods are widely used to dig wells and pump groundwater for drinking and irrigation due to limited access to modern equipment.
Yemen's years-long conflict has severely weakened infrastructure and basic services, forcing many communities to rely on outdated machinery and unsafe practices to access groundwater.
