A miner was confirmed killed following a rockslide at the Mokhovsky coal mine in western Siberia last week, Russian investigators said Monday.
The miner had gone missing on Thursday after the rockslide buried him and another worker during excavation work at the open-pit coal mine in the Kemerovo region. Earlier, rescuers managed to pull one of the men from the rubble and he was later hospitalized.
“The body of the second miner was found under the rubble without signs of life,” the regional branch of Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said in a statement.
Authorities are investigating alleged safety violations in connection with the incident.
The Mokhovsky coal mine is operated by Kuzbgassrazrezugol, which is owned by Ural Mining Metallurgical Company.
Shortly after last week’s rockslide, Kuzbgassrazrezugol said a bulldozer operator and drilling rig operator were part of a two-man team in the area during the accident.
The rockslide took place two days after a similar incident at the Denisovsky Vostochny coal mine in Far East Russia’s republic of Sakha (Yakutia).
In that incident, one miner was killed while three others were able to escape. The mine, with 4 million metric tons per year in production capacity, belongs to Russia’s Kolmar group of coal mining enterprises.
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