A new deadly accident at a mine owned by global steel giant ArcelorMittal has killed at least 11 people in Kazakhstan, authorities in that vast Central Asian country said on Saturday.
• Also read: Kazakhstan: Deadly fire at an ArcelorMittal mine
“A fire occurred at the Kostenko mine, resulting in 11 deaths, while 18 victims were hospitalized with varying degrees of injuries,” the regional administration said in a statement.
According to the same source, “of the 252 miners present underground, 205 miners were brought to the surface.”
This is the second fatal accident in two months at a group site, after five miners died in the same region in mid-August.
The tragedy occurred in a mine not far from the city of Karaganda, an industrial region in central Kazakhstan where Emergency Situations Minister Syrym Sharipkhanov was visiting.
The ArcelorMittal Group is regularly accused by Kazakhstan of failing to comply with safety or environmental standards.