According to press reports, 126 workers were underground when the mine was hit by an explosion and then subsequent fire. All the workers managed to evacuate the mine safely bar one.
The fire started late Wednesday at the Oktyabrskaya mine in the town of Polysayevo in the Kemerovo region of Siberia, AP press reports said.
The exact reason for the explosion is yet to be detailed by Russian officials.
The miner’s death adds to a high number of fatalities in Russian underground coal mines. AP said according to the Independent Coal Miners' Union, 68 miners were killed on the job last year and 98 in 2001.
