Kazakhstan mourns after ArcelorMittal mine disaster kills 45
Kazakhstan was in national mourning on Sunday after 45 people died in a fire at an ArcelorMittal mine, the worst accident in the central Asian country’s post-Soviet history, The Guardian reports.
The tragedy, which struck at the Kostenko coalmine in the Karaganda region on Saturday, came after a series of deadly incidents at ArcelorMittal mines and has prompted the nationalisation of the company’s local affiliate.
“As of 3pm (0900 GMT), the bodies of 42 people were found,” Kazakhstan’s emergency services said on social media. “The search for four miners continues.”
Later, authorities said the bodies of three others had been found and rescuers were searching for the last missing miner, but held little hope of finding him alive.
The previous deadliest mine accident in post-Soviet Kazakhstan occurred in 2006, killing 41 miners at another ArcelorMittal site. It came two months after another incident that killed five miners.
