Condolences from Nikolai Rybakov and Grigory Yavlinsky, 26.11.2021

Photo by RIA Novosti / Alexander Kryazhev

Yabloko leaders Nikolai Rybakov and Grigory Yavlinsky expressed their condolences to the families of the miners and rescuers killed in the accident in the Listvyazhnaya mine, Kuzbass, the Kemerovo region. 51 people died in the accident. Among the dead were five rescue workers who tried to take miners to the surface after the explosion. This is the largest accident with human victims at a mine in Kuzbass in ten years.

NIKOLAY RYBAKOV, CHAIRMAN OF THE YABLOKO PARTY:

Unfortunately, this present, another, tragic event at a mine in Russia is again the result of criminal negligence. According to media reports, despite the excess of the methane level, people were sent to the mine, and a little earlier, the inspectors formally filled out certificates on the technical condition of the mine. This is not a chain of random events that led to the death of people, this is a deliberate violation that simply could not end otherwise.

Human life has not acquired value in our country, the policy according to the principle “you can’t make an omelet without breaking eggs” prevails. The unconditional value of the life of every person should become the basis of the future of our country.

Condolences to the families and friends of the killed miners and rescuers.

GRIGORY YAVLINSKY, CHAIRMAN OF THE FEDERAL POLITICAL COMMITTEE OF THE YABLOKO PARTY:

Coal accidents have been common in Russia for a long time, many of them are explained by a failure to comply with regulations in order to maximise revenues at any cost. As far as we know, government agencies have discovered hundreds of violations this year at the Listvyazhnaya mine. Although they imposed fines and ordered work to be suspended, the mine continued to operate.

I know firsthand that the work of miners poses a deadly threat. In the 1970s, I worked in mines for four years and the longest period in Kuzbass, in the city of Leninsk-Kuznetsk. I was developing a system of qualifications and job descriptions for engineers and underground workers. Once, together with another 18 miners, after a methane explosion and a rock collapse, we were trapped underground. At a depth of 270 meters, we stood in the water for more than a day. We were rescued. Unfortunately, not all survived.

Today [on the second day of rescue works] nobody was saved at Listvyazhnaya.

A terrible and irreparable tragedy. Grief.

My deepest condolences to the families, relatives and friends of those killed in Kuzbass.