The rescue operation has been completed at the Pioneer Gold Mine in the Amur region, where 13 miners were trapped underground following a rockslide that occurred on March 18th, announced the press service of Pokrovsky Rudnik, the mining company that owns the mine, on Monday.
The decision to halt the rescue efforts was made by the head of the operation, based on the recommendations of a technical council. This council was comprised of representatives from the Pioneer mine, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, and the State Company for Militarized Mine Rescue (VGSChS). An emergency situation had previously been declared in the region, and legal proceedings were initiated against the mining company for violations of safety regulations.
The preliminary detention of Alexey Biryukov, the executive director of Pioneer, was ordered by the court of the city of Blagoveshchensk. Investigations revealed that Biryukov was aware of the accumulation of a large volume of water near the mining operation but failed to take measures to drain it, which could have prevented the rockslide.
Experts have suggested that continuing the rescue operation could have induced further rockslides.