Mine explosion in Ukraine: 32 missing, 17 dead
A methane explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least 17 workers, officials said.
Miners arriving for work were enlisted to assist with what started as a rescue mission, but gradually became an operation to retrieve a mounting number of dead. That effort was hampered by limited access to the deep subterranean network.
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- Ukrainian coal miners wait in a room before going underground at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- People stand outside Zasyadtko mine on the evening of March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. An explosion over 3,000 feet below the surface early this morning killed at least ten miners and left 27 more missing. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Miners leave Zasyadtko mine on the evening of March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Zasyadtko mine is seen on March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Zasyadtko mine is seen on March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Zasyadtko mine is seen on March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Zasyadtko mine is seen on March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Zasyadtko mine is seen on March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- Miners leave Zasyadtko mine on the evening of March 4, 2015 in Donetsk, Ukraine. An explosion over 3,000 feet below the surface early this morning killed dozens. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
- A miner wounded in a blast at the Zasyadko mine is moved for treatment at the Republican Center for Traumatology hospital in Donetsk on March 4, 2015. (John Macdougall/AFP/Getty Images)
- A miner wounded in a blast at the Zasyadko mine lies in a bed at the Republican Center for Traumatology hospital in Donetsk on March 4, 2015. (John Macdougall/AFP/Getty Images)
- A miner wounded in a blast at the Zasyadko mine lies in a bed at the Republican Center for Traumatology hospital in Donetsk on March 4, 2015. (John Macdougall/AFP/Getty Images)
- A Ukrainian coal miner sits inside a bus after exiting the underground of the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Igor Muryginn, a 42-year-old injured miner from the Zasyadko mine lies in a hospital in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov)
- Ukrainian coal miners wait in a room before going underground at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Women cry as they gather outside the Zasyadko coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine Wednesday March 4, 2015 after an explosion took place underground at the coal mine in war-torn eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, an area controlled by pro-Russian rebels. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Ukrainian coal miners wait for a bus after returning to the surface of the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Ukrainian coal miners arrive at the Zasyadko mine, to assist in the search for bodies of colleagues following an explosion, in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- An Ukrainian coal miner waits for a bus after exiting the underground of the Zasyadko mine, where he helped search for bodies of colleagues and clear up debris following an explosion, in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Ukrainian coal miners board an elevator going underground to help search for colleagues and clear up debris following an explosion at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Miners sit on a bus after an explosion at the Zasyadko coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine Wednesday March 4, 2015. An explosion took place underground at the Zasyadko coal mine in war-torn eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, an area controlled by pro-Russian rebels. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Pro-Russian rebels stand outside the Zasyadko coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine Wednesday March 4, 2015 after an explosion took place underground at the Zasyadko coal mine in war-torn eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, an area controlled by pro-Russian rebels. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- A woman cries as she waits to hear news about relatives after an explosion at the Zasyadko coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine Wednesday March 4, 2015. An explosion took place underground at the Zasyadko coal mine in war-torn eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, an area controlled by pro-Russian rebels. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Ukrainian coal miners wait for a bus after exiting the underground of the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- A Ukrainian coal miner walks after exiting the underground of the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said. One injured miner reported seeing five bodies.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Ukrainian coal miners start their descent underground at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Igor Muryginn, a 42-year-old injured miner from the Zasyadko mine lies in a hospital in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov)
- A relative of a miner cries outside the headquarters of the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
- Emergency and medical workers support miners family members arriving at the headquarters of the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn Wednesday in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing at least one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said. One injured miner reported seeing five bodies. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
The explosion at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk, an eastern city under the control of Russian-backed separatists, wasn’t caused by shelling, rebel authorities said. Eastern Ukraine has been wracked by fighting between government forces and Russian-backed rebels for almost a year, a conflict that has killed more than 6,000 people.
The blast occurred more than 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) underground as 230 workers were in the mine, separatist authorities in Donetsk said in a statement, blaming a combustible mixture of methane and air — a common cause of industrial mining accidents. The bulk of those laborers were evacuated after the explosion.
Yuliana Bedilko, a representative for the rebel-managed rescue services, said one body had been brought to the surface in the morning and that another 16 were located below ground by Wednesday evening.
Rebel officials had said earlier that 32 workers were unaccounted for, suggesting 15 still remained trapped. – Nataliya Vasilyeva, Associated Press