Russia ends search for 13 miners stuck underground for two weeks

The miners, who specialize in tunneling, were trapped in a 125-meter-deep landslide at a gold mine in the Amur region. Their bodies have not been found.

They withdraw without being able to reach their position. On Monday, April 1, Russian rescuers ended operations aimed at finding 13 miners who had been missing underground for more than two weeks in the Russian Far East. The miners, who specialize in tunnelling, were stuck at a depth of about 125 meters after a landslide in a gold mine in the Amur region on March 18.

Hundreds of rescuers dispatched to the site worked to clear debris and dig tunnels for them. Also “On April 1, it was decided to stop rescue operations at ‘Pionnier’ mine”, Pokrovsky Rudnik, the company that operates the site, reported as quoted by the Interfax press agency. According to her, the “Drilling results show that the galleries where the miners may be located are filled with rock and water.”

Put this situation “In danger of death” Rescuers and mine workers are involved in the search for the miners, the company explained. Authorities had earlier announced that rescue operations were complicated due to continuous flow of groundwater into the mine.

“All measures have been taken,” the Kremlin promises

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters “(…) all measures that can be taken have been taken” 13 attempts to save minors. In a telegram, the governor of the Amur region, for his part, thanked the rescuers who worked “Risking their lives”. “I’m sure the experts did all they could”writes Vasily Orlov, who pledged financial support to the families of the missing.

Accidents in Russian mines, as elsewhere in the former USSR, are frequent and are often associated with lax enforcement of safety regulations, poor management, corruption, or obsolete equipment.