Three miners have been killed early on Friday in an accident in the Ziminka coal mine in southwest Siberia’s Kemerovo Region, the regional administration reported.
“The bodies of three miners have been discovered,” administration spokesman Anton Gorelkin told RIA Novosti.
Investigators believe that a poisonous gas leak inside the mine, located in the town of Prokopyevsk, could have caused the deaths. There were eight people in the mine, owned by the Siberian Business Union, at the time of the accident. Five escaped safely.
Regional authorities have reacted promptly. Kemerovo Governor Aman Tuleyev has taken personal control of the accident response, establishing a special investigation commission, while police have launched a criminal probe.
Tuleyev has also ordered checks at all mines in the region to ensure the safety of workers, his office said in a statement.
The governor and the mine owner agreed that each of the families of those killed will receive all legal compensation, an extra 2 million rubles (about $62,000) and an apartment, the statement said.
Children of the killed miners will also receive their monthly salaries until they turn 18 – the age when a child is considered an adult in Russia. They will also be ensured free education and receive the best available health services, the statement said.