26 Injured in Ukraine Coal Mine Blast

A methane gas explosion at a mine in eastern Ukraine injured 26 people Thursday less than a week after two accidents in the same area claimed the lives of 37 miners.

The blast occurred the Lugansk region's Krasnokutska mine at 11:40 am local time (08:40 GMT) at a depth of 155 meters while 224 miners were working, of whom 37 were in the impact zone.

"According to preliminary information, 26 miners have been wounded, five of whom sustained serious injuries," the emergency situations ministry said in a statement.

Work in the mine was not interrupted.

Thirty-seven miners were killed in the July 29 explosions deep in the Sukhodolskaya-Vostochnaya coal mine, also in Lugansk region, and the Bazhanova mine in the neighboring Donetsk region, in Ukraine's worst mining accidents since 2007.

Fatal accidents are frequent in Ukrainian mines, most of which are located in the country's industrial eastern region. Many mines are underfunded and poorly equipped, while safety violations are rife.