Russian coal mine blast kills 21

An explosion in a Russian coal mine yesterday killed 21 people and four people were missing, the Emergencies Ministry said.

Rescuers were trying to reach the missing miners, who were two kilometres from the surface at the pit in Siberia's Kemerovo region, though it was unclear if they were alive, media reports said.

Accidents are common in Russia's under-funded mines. Last year a blast in a mine in the same region killed 45 people.

President Vladimir Putin, in televised comments, ordered his ministers to send urgent help to the mine and tomorrow was declared a day of mourning in the region.