DONETSK, Ukraine (AFP) - At least 17 miners were killed and 16 more were missing and feared dead in eastern Ukraine after a blast on Wednesday at an accident-prone coal mine in the rebel-held city of Donetsk.
The early morning blast, believed to be caused by a build-up of methane gas, hit the Zasyadko mine near the city's bomb-scarred airport in what officials described as a "terrible tragedy".
By Wednesday evening 17 bodies had been located, according to the regional administration.
"The fate of 16 other miners is still unknown," spokeswoman of the rebel emergency ministry in Donetsk Yuliana Bedylo told AFP.
The head of the rebel Donetsk People's Republic administration, Maksim Leshchenko, told reporters that 197 workers, out of 230 in the mine when the explosion occurred shortly before 0400 GMT (12 noon Singapore time), had been rescued alive.
On Wednesday evening, emergency workers were forced to call off the rescue operation due to the threat posed by the high methane levels, Mykhaylo Volynets of the Ukrainian Independent Miners Union said.
A spokesman for another mining union, who did not wish to be named, told AFP the chances of finding more survivors were "practically zero".
'NO INFORMATION'
In Donetsk, anxious family members gathered outside the mine to await news of their loved ones.
Valentina Dzyuba, 72, told AFP she had been waiting for seven hours for news of her 47-year-old son Vladimir.
"We have no information. I fear he's dead," a tearful Dzyuba said.
Vyacheslav Baloban, one of two injured miners who AFP met at Donetsk hospital, said he was knocked unconscious by the blast.
"I just remember the explosion... I just remember the dust," Baloban, who was being treated for a head injury and burns, told AFP.
'TERRIBLE TRAGEDY'
President Petro Poroshenko sent condolences on the "tragedy" to the victims' families in a Twitter message.
The coal mines dotted across Ukraine's eastern rustbelt have a history of disasters involving high numbers of casualties.
Zasyadko, which is one of the country's biggest, was the scene of the worst mining accident in Ukraine's post-Soviet history in 2007, in which 101 workers were killed.
Ukraine's parliament speaker Volodymyr Groysman had earlier announced 32 fatalities in the "terrible tragedy" and called on lawmakers to observe a minute's silence.
Groysman later backtracked, saying he could not confirm the toll.
The incident was seen as a test of the ability of the rebel authorities which now control swathes of eastern Ukraine to manage a crisis.
Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk complained that the rebels did not let government rescue teams help in the rescue operation.
'DON'T NEED HELP'
The rebel authorities, however, claimed they had everything they needed.
"We don't need the help," said Leshchenko of the rebel administration.
The head of Donetsk hospital, Alexander Oprichenko, said he had 51 beds available, with another 300 already occupied by patients, around half of whom had been wounded by fighting.
"The treatment system has not been affected by the war," he declared.
"All we're missing is some drugs. Russia helps, but our stocks are low."
The mine lies just a few kilometres from the front line, where sporadic clashes between government forces and the pro-Russian separatists have been reported in recent days, despite both parties backing a Feb 12 ceasefire deal.
A military spokesman in Kiev reported Wednesday that another soldier had been killed by rebel fire in the previous 24 hours, bringing to at least five the number of troops killed since Sunday.
The separatists do not provide regular accounts of their losses.
Kiev also accused the rebels of continuing to attack government positions in the village of Shyrokine near Mariupol, the biggest city in the conflict zone still controlled by the government.
Over 6,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since the conflict began in April 2014, according to the United Nations.
Donetsk has seen some of the worst fighting since the start of the insurgency following the ouster of pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych.
Since the ceasefire took effect the rebels have seized the transport hub of Debaltseve but the truce has largely held since, despite mutual accusations of violations.
SOVIET-ERA MINING
Ukraine's underfunded mines rely mostly on outdated Soviet-era equipment. Most of the disasters have been caused by build-ups of methane gas.
Zasyadko is owned by Yukhym Zvyahilsky, an MP in Kiev.
The facility has been caught in crossfire on several occasions in recent months, with shelling knocking out the power supply on at least one occasion.
