Deadly Conditions in Ukraine's Aging, Underfinanced Mines
1. Coal Mine Explosion in Ukraine Kills at Least 37
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2001/aug2001/ukra-a23.shtml#top
2. Hope Dies for Ukraine Miners - BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/europe/newsid_1503000/1503952.stm
3. Opinion: "A Blast of Reality" - The Kiev Post
http://www.kpnews.com/main/9539/
4. Mineral Resources of Ukraine
http://www.un.kiev.ua:8080/HDR/new/Physical_Resources/Physical_Resources-The.html
5. Country Analysis in Brief: Ukraine
http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/ukraine.html
6. International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Worker's Unions (ICEM)
http://www.icem.org/index.html
7. Coal Information Network
http://www.coalinfo.com/
8. Embassy of Ukraine
http://www.ukremb.com/
9. Brama Ukrai Newsstand
http://www.brama.com/news/
10. Investigators Probe Deadly Ukraine Mine Blast (CNN, 3/12/2000)
http://www.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/europe/03/12/ukraine.explosion/
August 24th is Ukraine's Independence day but a recent deadly mine explosion casts a shadow over the festivities. The death toll for August 19th's blast in the Zasyadko mine, eastern Ukraine, is now up to fifty. This latest explosion is one of many disasters at Ukraine’s aging, under-financed mines, which are considered to be the most dangerous in Europe. According to the World Socialist Website, five miners die for every million tonnes of coal extracted in Ukraine.
Other coal mine explosions include a blast that killed 50 at the same pit two years ago, and a similar methane-coal dust explosion that left 82 miners dead last March in Krasnodon, eastern Ukraine. Also, during May of this year, eight miners were killed in a methane gas explosion at another eastern Ukrainian mine and three other miners died in unrelated accidents at coal mines in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
To learn more about the desperate situation of Ukrainian coal miners, visit the Websites suggested above. The first two resources are news reports from the World Socialist Website and the BBC Online. The third is an op-ed piece from the Kiev Post online. The next four resources deal with the coal industry and contain facts about mining in Ukraine. Websites of the Ukrainian embassy to the US and The Brama Newsstand are sites for browsing general news from Ukraine. Finally, the last resource is an archived news report from CNN.com about the explosion in the Krasnodon this past March.
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