A methane blast at a diamond mine in Russia’s remote Sakha republic in Siberia killed three miners and injured two others, regional authorities said Monday.
The accident occurred at the Udachny (“Lucky”) mine, owned by Russian state diamond giant Alrosa.
The site – one of the deepest open-pit mines in the world – lies in the remote industrial town of Udachny, in one of the coldest areas on the planet.
“Today there was a methane outburst at the Udachny mine,” Aysen Nikolayev, the regional governor, said on Telegram.
“As a result of the explosion five people were impacted. Unfortunately, three of them died,” he said.
Nikolayev said the two other people were hospitalized and that a team of medics was sent to the remote town from the regional capital of Yakutsk.
He also said he had ordered “serious work on strengthening industrial safety measures in the republic’s enterprises.”
Alrosa said it would help the families of the miners who were killed.
“I express deepest condolences to the families and the close ones of those who died, their families will be given material help,” said Pavel Marinychev, general director of Alrosa.
The Soviet-era Udachny mine has a depth of around 630 meters.
Accidents at Russian mines and factories are relatively common due to an often lax approach to safety measures.
