This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-59421319
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 5 | Version 6 |
---|---|
Russian coal mine: Dozens killed in Siberia accident | |
(about 5 hours later) | |
The build-up of gas in the mine meant that several rescuers died in the accident | |
Fifty-one people have been killed in Russia's worst mining disaster in a decade, prompting three days of mourning in Siberia's Kemerovo region. | |
Among the dead were five rescue workers, although a sixth was found alive and taken to hospital in a serious condition. | |
The blast happened at the Listvyazhnaya mine when coal dust caught fire in a ventilation shaft on Thursday. | |
Rescuers suffocated as they tried to reach dozens of missing miners. | |
At the time of the accident early on Thursday there were 287 people in the mine, some 3,500km (2,175 miles) east of Moscow. | |
Many managed to get out and 49 people were taken to hospital, some of them suffering from smoke inhalation. | |
But dozens were trapped and rescue operations had to be suspended because of high concentrations of methane. | |
Officials said a methane gas explosion had filled the mine with smoke and the victims had died because of a lack of oxygen and high concentration of poisonous gas. | |
At the mine | |
By Petr Kozlov, BBC Russian | |
Relatives sobbed outside the mine office on Friday. | |
One man who said his grandson had died was prevented from going in and argued bitterly with a guard. | |
A woman came out carrying a black plastic bag containing her dead son's clothes and boots: "My boy is under the ground now, there is nothing more to say." | |
Relatives comforted each other at the Listvyazhnaya mine entrance | |
Relatives said warnings about growing levels of methane gas in the mine had gone unheeded. They said there had been a fire at the mine only 10 days earlier and miners had been frustrated that more was not done to improve safety. | |
Amid all the sadness there was one moment of relief. As hope faded for the lives of the missing, the rescuers managed to find one man alive. | |
The survivor from the rescue team was named as Alexander Zakovryashin and Russian Emergencies Minister Alexander Chupriyan said it was a "miracle carried out by our people". | |
The mine director, his deputy and the disaster area supervisor were arrested over alleged safety failings, according to Russian news agencies. | |
Russian mine accidents are not uncommon and this is not the first accident at Listvyazhnaya. In 2004, a methane gas explosion left 13 people dead. | |
In 2016, authorities assessed the safety of the country's 58 coal mines and declared 34% of them potentially unsafe. The list did not include the Listvyazhnaya mine at the time, reports say. | |
President Vladimir Putin described the loss of life as "a great tragedy". |