Friday, April 20, 2012 -
The Karaganda coal mine in north-central Kazakhstan suspended operations following the fatal accident of a miner on Friday morning.
The mine is owned by ArcelorMittal Temirtau, the Kazakh subsidiary of the world's leading steelmaker.
"In memory of the killed miner it was decided to suspend the work of ‘Kazakhstanskaya’ mine for the day. In addition, employees will undergo additional mine safety training," the company said in a press release, according to a semi-government news agency.
The Kazinform.kz news agency did not provide any details on the circumstances of the death.
There were 343 people in the mine at the time of the accident, the news agency cited the regional department of emergency situations as saying.
Rescuers recovered the body of the miner at 9.55am, it said.
In August 2011, two workers were killed at the same coal mine when a gas blowout occurred deep underground. ArcelorMittal Temirtau then promised to compensate the families of the dead men with the amount equal to 10 times their annual wage.