An underground gas explosion at a colliery in Ukraine's Donbass coalfield injured at least three miners with a further 37 missing, officials said this morning.
The blast occurred at about 5am local time, about 1 km underground at the Karl Marx pit in the Donetsk region, the heart of the coalfield.
"The blast was very powerful. It shattered windows in the mine's administrative office and damaged the panelling of a lift," said Marina Nikitina, spokeswoman for the regional mine safety inspectorate.
Nikitina said four miners had been injured and 37 were missing. Ukraine's Emergencies Ministry put the number of injured at three, with 40 unaccounted for.
Gas explosions are a frequent occurrence in Ukraine's outdated mines, many of which are loss-making and date from the 19th century.
Three explosions at the Zasyadko mine in Donetsk late last year killed 106 men in two weeks.