The Raspadskaya mine explosion was a
mine explosion in the
Raspadskaya mine, located near
Mezhdurechensk
Mezhdurechensk () is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia.
;Urban localities
*Mezhdurechensk, Kemerovo Oblast, a city in Kemerovo Oblast; administratively incorporated as a city under oblast jurisdiction
* Mezhdurechensk, Komi Repu ...
in
Kemerovo Oblast
Kemerovo Oblast (, ), also known as Kuzbass (, ), after the Kuznetsk Basin, is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Kemerovo is the administrative center and largest city of the oblast. Kemerovo Oblast is one of Rus ...
, Russia, which occurred on 8 May 2010. It was believed to have been caused by a buildup of
methane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...
. The initial explosion was followed by a second approximately four hours later which collapsed the mine's ventilation shaft and trapped several rescue workers. By 18 May 2010, 66 people were confirmed to have died with at least 99 others injured and as many as a further 24 unaccounted for.
History
The mine, owned by Russian company
Raspadskaya, is the largest underground coal mine in Russia,
producing 10% of the country's
coking coal
Coke is a grey, hard, and porous coal-based fuel with a high carbon content. It is made by heating coal or petroleum in the absence of air. Coke is an important industrial product, used mainly in iron ore smelting, but also as a fuel in stoves ...
. It has a history of accidents and safety problems. In March 2001, another methane explosion killed four miners and injured six. The mine was shut down for two weeks in 2008 due to safety violations and a worker was killed after part of the mine collapsed in January 2010.
Incident
The first blast occurred at 20:55
Moscow Summer Time
Moscow Time (MSK; ) is the time zone for the city of Moscow, Russia, and most of western Russia, including Saint Petersburg. It is the second-westernmost of the eleven time in Russia, time zones of Russia, after the non-continguous Kaliningrad ...
(16:55
UTC
Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...
) with the second at 01:00 MST (21:00 UTC). The explosions were confirmed by investigators to have been caused by
methane gas
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...
.
A secondary explosion was reported approximately four hours later, with 20 rescue workers now among those missing.
The second explosion caused a collapse of the mine's ventilation shaft, drastically reducing the flow of fresh air into the mine.
Rescue efforts were suspended after the second blast.
By 18 May 2010, 66 people were confirmed to have died, at least 99 injured and 24 remained trapped underground.
Rescue work resumed late on May 9 after methane levels had dropped below safety limits and, at the peak of the operation, 560 people were involved with aid being sent from other parts of Russia.
Aftermath
Aman Tuleyev
Amangeldy Gumirovich "Aman" Tuleyev (, , ; 13 May 1944 – 20 November 2023) was a Russian statesman. He served as governor of Kemerovo Oblast from 1997 to 2018 and was the chairman of the Council of People's Deputies of the Kemerovo Oblast brie ...
, governor of
Kemerovo Oblast
Kemerovo Oblast (, ), also known as Kuzbass (, ), after the Kuznetsk Basin, is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Kemerovo is the administrative center and largest city of the oblast. Kemerovo Oblast is one of Rus ...
, has taken charge of the rescue operation.
The mine was evacuated after the first explosion and 282 people escaped to the surface. The
Russian Energy Ministry has set up a task force to deal with the aftermath of the incident while
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
ordered a report from his emergencies minister and a junior energy minister, Vladimir Azbukin visited the scene. Medvedev ordered
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
to head a government commission dealing with the aftermath of the incident.
The mine company agreed to pay 1 million
Russian ruble
The ruble or rouble (; Currency symbol, symbol: ₽; ISO 4217, ISO code: RUB) is the currency of the Russia, Russian Federation. Banknotes and coins are issued by the Central Bank of Russia, which is Russia's central bank, monetary authority ind ...
s in compensation (approximately
US$
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
33,000) to the families of the dead with additional assistance from the state. A government spokesman released a statement in which he said "families of the deceased, children of miners will get all the necessary assistance. The government has already discussed the issue with the mine's owners".
The event occurred the day before
Victory Day
Victory Day is a commonly used name for public holidays in various countries, where it commemorates a nation's triumph over a hostile force in a war or the liberation of a country from hostile occupation. In many cases, multiple countries may ob ...
and officials in the nearby town of
Mezhdurechensk
Mezhdurechensk () is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia.
;Urban localities
*Mezhdurechensk, Kemerovo Oblast, a city in Kemerovo Oblast; administratively incorporated as a city under oblast jurisdiction
* Mezhdurechensk, Komi Repu ...
, where many of the mine's employees live, cancelled planned celebrations for the following day.
A criminal investigation was launched into the incident by Russian authorities and
post-mortem examination
An autopsy (also referred to as post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death; ...
s were carried out on the bodies of the miners to establish a precise cause of death.
The tragedy provoked civil unrest in nearby
Mezhdurechensk
Mezhdurechensk () is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia.
;Urban localities
*Mezhdurechensk, Kemerovo Oblast, a city in Kemerovo Oblast; administratively incorporated as a city under oblast jurisdiction
* Mezhdurechensk, Komi Repu ...
. Coal miners rallied and occasionally clashed with police, 28 were arrested. Governor Tuleyev met with the protesters and agreed with some of their demands.
The appeal of "The Union of Kuznetsk Basin Residents"
On 16 May a new movement "The Union of Kuznetsk Basin Residents" issued an appeal to the President, the people of Russia and to those who live in the region. The authors made five demands: release the detained in the town of Mezhdurechensk, increase miners' minimum salaries threefold, stop persecution of the independent trade union, withdraw the police forces brought from other regions, and introduce monthly meetings of the town administration with the residents. The authors said that they would wait for the reply from the President until 21 May. Then, if their demands were not satisfied, they promised to start political actions.
The appeal appeared in blogs, including the specially created blog Golos Kuzbassa (''lit.'' Voice of Kuzbass) and community Mezhdurechensk (later the community moderators deleted the text). It was also published by some mass media.
The State Duma deputy from the communists
Nina Ostanina
Nina Alexandrovna Ostanina (; born 26 December 1955) is a Russian Communist politician. She has been a member of the State Duma since 1995.
She was Secretary of the Kemerovo regional Communist party organization.
Career
She was an unsuccess ...
supported this appeal. According to her, if the region administration does not heed the demands of citizens, it may lead to events similar to
those in Kyrgyzstan. The appeal was also supported by the
Solidarnost
United Democratic Movement "Solidarnost" (; ''Obyedinonnoye demokraticheskoye dvizheniye «Solidarnost»'', ''ODD "Solidarnost"''), abbreviated ODD "Solidarnost" (Russian for "Solidarity", named after the Polish Solidarność), is a Russian lib ...
movement and the All-Russian Strike Committee.
See also
*
Vorkuta mine disaster
In February 2016, a series of explosions caused the deaths of 36 people, including 31 miners and five rescue workers, at the Severnaya coal mine 10 kilometres north of the city of Vorkuta, Komi Republic, Russia. The explosions were believed to b ...
—25-29 February 2016, methane explosion, 36 killed
*
Yubileynaya mine
The Yubileinaya mine is a coal mine in the Kemerovo Oblast area of Siberia, Russia. The mine is operated by Joint-Stock Company "TopProm", owned by the Limited Liability Company "AVD-Capital"
Explosion
On May 24, 2007, a methane explosion at ...
—24 May 2007, methane explosion, 39 killed
*
Ulyanovskaya Mine disaster
The Ulyanovskaya Mine disaster was caused by a methane explosion that occurred on March 19, 2007 in the Ulyanovskaya longwall coal mine in the Kemerovo Oblast. At least 108 Retrieved on March 21, 2007 people were reported to have been killed by t ...
—19 March 2007, methane explosion, at least 108 killed
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raspadskaya mine explosion, 2010 May
2010 disasters in Russia
Coal mining disasters in Russia
2010 mining disasters
History of Kemerovo Oblast
Explosions in 2010
Industrial fires and explosions in Russia
May 2010 in Russia