Death toll rises to four in Ukraine mine accident, nine missing

Jun 9, 2009, 8:50 GMT

Kiev - The death toll in a Ukrainian coal mine accident rose to four on Tuesday as rescuers excavated tunnel debris in search of nine more workers still missing, Kiev's Ministry of Emergency Situations said.

The Monday cave-in striking the Skochinsky mine in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region left 33 people hospitalised, and closed 12 metres of shaft an estimated 1.2 kilometres below ground, mine officials said.

Rescue work was proceeding slowly, as the collapsed tunnel ran through unstable rock saturated with potentially explosive methane gas, Channel 5 television reported.

Searchers unearthed two bodies on Monday afternoon.

Mine officials were blaming the cave-in on a structure failure due to high gas pressure in the rock surrounding the tunnel, according to the report.

A total 51 workers are thought to have been in the gallery where the roof collapsed, and a total of 344 were underground in the pit at the time of the accident.

Donetsk hospitals were treating victims for crushing injuries, and lung damage caused by gas or coal dust inhalation, the Interfax news agency reported.

A May cave-in at the neighbouring Novodzerzhinska mine, also in the Donetsk region, trapped three miners underground for more than 72 hours before help reached them. Six died in that accident.

Ukraine's coal mines are among the world's most dangerous, with an average of 300 workers dying on the job annually. The most common causes of miner deaths are methane gas explosions, tunnel collapses, and equipment failures.