Emergency Situations Ministry says 63 miners are dead and the fate of 37 others is not known after a methane gas explosion ripped through a coal mine on Sunday. The deadly blast is the latest incident to spark concerns about the safety of mines in Ukraine. Authorities in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine have declared three days of mourning. Stefan Bos reports from Budapest.
Ukrainian Emergencies Ministry rescuers prepare go to the entrance of the Zasyadka mine in Donetsk, Ukraine, Sunday, 18 Nov. 2007
Investigators say the explosion ripped through the Zasyadko mine in the eastern Donetsk region, about 1,000 meters underground.
Initially close to 500 miners were trapped, but most have been brought to safety. Nearly two dozen required emergency treatment at a local hospital, many with burn injuries.
Ukraine's Emergency Situations Ministry has told VOA that for many help has come to late. Duty officer Vladimir Gembovich says they have recovered the remains of dozens of miners. His ministry has been flooded by phone calls from relatives desperate for news of their loved one. Shocked family members gathered by the mine since Sunday morning.
Gembovich says the investigation into the cause of the blast will try to determine what triggered the incident.
"They say it was an explosion of methane [gas] mixed with air," Gembovich said. "But I think an investigation will be carried out afterwards and it will clarify everything."
Experts say the Zasyadko mine, one of Ukraine's largest, employs some 10,000 people and produces up to 10,000 tons of coal every day.
Since 1999 more than 140 miners have lost their lives in accidents at the facility, which has gained a reputation as one of the most dangerous in the country.
Among the most serious accidents was a gas leak in September 2006 that killed 13 miners and made dozens more sick. And, in 1999 an explosion there claimed 50 lives, while in 2001 another blast claimed 55 lives.
Russian news reports say that on Saturday in the Lenin Mine, also in Donetsk region, one miner died after a section of tunnel collapsed. It comes amid a debate on the future of mining in Ukraine, where a lack of modern equipment has made the mines among the world's most dangerous.
O saldo de mortos numa explosão em uma mina de carvão  na cidade do Donetsk, Ucrânia, até agora é de 68 pessoas; o balanço ameaça toda hora aumentar devido à quantidade de mineiros feridos.

"Sessenta e três pessoas morreram e se ignora a sorte de outras 37", declarou à AFP Igor Krol,  porta-voz do Ministério de Situações de Emergência ucraniano.

Segundo a imprensa local e dados do Ministério de Situações de Emergência, 360 mineiros conseguiram chegar à superfície e se encontram a salvo; outros 28 se encontram hospitalizados, enquanto que 70 continuam desaparecidos.

Ainda se desconhece a causa exata da explosão, ocorrida durante à noite a mil metros de profundidade. Inicialmente foi sugerido que uma faísca teria provocado a explosão de gás metano, acumulado na mina, quando 456 mineiros estavam trabalhando.

Pela manhã familiares das vítimas foram ao lugar do acidente. Conforme informações da AFP, algumas mulheres se deprimiram tão logo saiu a lista de mortos. Por enquanto só uma pequena parte dos falecidos pôde ser identificada.

Durante a tarde, mais de trinta equipes de resgates se encontravam no local do acidente.

O Primeiro-ministro, Viktor Yanukovich, foi ao local e o presidente do país, Viktor Yushenko, fará sua visita nesta segunda-feira.

"Choro e sofro com todo o país", declarou o Chefe de Estado ucraniano. Do mesmo modo, criticou ao governo dizendo que a indústria mineira foi vítima de "esforços insuficientes" quanto à reforma da mesma.