2008 Ukraine coal mine collapse

The 2008 Ukrainian coal mine collapse occurred at the Karl Marx Coal Mine in the city of Yenakiieve, Donetsk Oblast (province) of eastern Ukraine on June 8, 2008.cite news|url=http://voanews.com/english/2008-06-08-voa21.cfm|title=Ukraine Mine Blast Traps 37 Workers|date=2008-06-08|publisher=Voice of America|accessdate=2008-06-09|last=Bos|first=Stefan] The mine collapse was said to have been caused by a gas pipe explosion.cite news|url=http://www.efluxmedia.com/news_Ukraine_Rescue_Teams_Save_23_Miners_18763.html|title=Ukraine: Rescue Teams Save 23 Miners|date=2008-06-09|accessdate=2008-06-09|publisher=eFlux Media|last=Brett|first=Charlie] The explosion occurred at a depth of about convert|1750|ft|m|0.cite news|title=23 miners reach surface after explosion in Ukraine|date=2008-06-09|accessdate=2008-06-10|url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h9OIj_NJU4ZQuQCArxujv4YGTrEgD916M1U86|publisher=Associated Press] 37 miners were trapped underground at the time of the collapse, located convert|3301|ft|m|0 below the surface of the earth. Additionally, five surface workers suffered from burns and other injuries in a blast that they described as one of the most powerful in the industry.

The workers in the mine were supposed to have been checking for safety concerns in the mine and fixing them, not mining, as the Karl Marx Coal Mine was one of 23 coal mines in the country closed for safety violations.cite news|title=Ukrainian miners violated work ban before blast|url=http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/06/10/ap5099950.html|date=2008-06-10|accessdate=2008-06-10|publisher=Forbes] However, a spokeswoman for the safety agency said that audio tapes prove that the miners were extracting coal that day, thus violating the ban. An investigation comission plans to have the management of the mine charged with negligence.cite news|url=http://steelguru.com/news/index/2008/06/17/NTA5MjU%3D/Divers_search_for_miners_at_Karl_Marx_mine.html|date=2008-06-17|accessdate=2008-06-17|title=Divers search for miners at Karl Marx mine|publisher=Steel Guru]

Rescue crews were sent down ventilation shafts, as the main shafts were blocked because of the explosion, and two miners were rescued at some time after the collapse. One body was found in the rubble.cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/09/2269457.htm?section=world|date=2008-06-09|accessdate=2008-06-09|publisher=ABC|title=Rescue teams free 23 Ukrainian miners] On June 9, it was announced that 22 more miners, who had been waiting for 30 hours, were rescued by the crews, while 13 remained buried.cite news|title=Twenty-four miners found alive in Ukraine|date=2008-06-09|accessdate=2008-06-09|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKL0962732920080609|publisher=Reuters UK|last=Kushch|first=Lina] On 10 June, an official said that there was little chance that the 12 remaining miners were alive, as 9 of them were riding up an elevator when the blast happened, sending the cage down the shaft, and the other 3 were convert|1000|m|0 underground, where methane levels were dangerously high after the explosion.cite web|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKL105236020080610?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0|title=Hope fades for 12 missing coal miners in Ukraine|publisher=Reuters UK|date=2008-06-10|accessdate=2008-06-10|last=Kushch|first=Lina] Officials were also concerned that the mine could flood.cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/06/10/ukraine.mine/|title= 12 miners missing after Ukraine explosion|publisher=CNN|date=2008-06-10|accessdate=2008-06-10|last=Sefanov|first=Mike] More than convert|30|m|0 have flooded into the mine, a report says. Little hope was expressed by officials for the twelve miners still trapped.

The Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko criticized the gas explosion and mine collapse as a failing of the government's policies and the outdatedness of the mines in the country.

ee also

* 2007 Zasyadko mine disaster, a methane explosion in November 2007

References