Blasts hit Russia's largest coal mine, 12 workers killed, 83 still trapped

12 dead, 83 trapped after blasts hit Russian mine

By LYNN BERRY | Associated Press | 3 hours, 27 minutes ago in Business

Rescue workers scrambled to save 83 people trapped in Russia's largest underground coal mine after two explosions killed at least 12 people and injured dozens more, officials said. Among those still trapped early Monday wererescue workers who had entered the Siberian mine after the first blast.

A high level of methane gas after Sunday's second, more powerful blast raised fears of further explosions and prevented more rescuers from going into the mine for the rest of the day.

Only early Monday was the first rescue team sent down to try to bring out five miners whose location had been established, said Valery Korchagin, a spokesman for the Emergency Ministry. It was not clear, however, whether the miners were still alive, he said.

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In December, nine people were killed in an explosion at an iron-ore mine in the Urals Mountains region that was blamed on faulty transportation of explosives.

The deadliest explosion in Russia's coal mines in decades occurred in March 2007, when 110 miners were killed in Kemerovo.

The United States was hit with its worst coal mining disaster in 40 years when 29 miners died April 5 in an explosion at a West Virginia mine.

In China, where the mining industry is the world's deadliest, at least 33 miners died after a mine flooded on March 28. The flood trapped 153 miners, but most were eventually rescued.

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I hope they find these trapped miners and bring them out safe.

No matter how you feel about coal mining, you have got to feel for these miners who go day in and day out into these dark dingy mines, see no daylight.. return to family that sits and waits for the miners' return... and then this.  It is very sad.  Let's hope this mine mishap has a better finish than we saw in WV.

-- Edited by Sanders on Sunday 9th of May 2010 09:16:40 PM