BFF-23 Three arrests after dam break in Siberia

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ZCZC

BFF-23

RUSSIA-MINING-ACCIDENT

Three arrests after dam break in Siberia

MOSCOW, Oct 20, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Three officials at a gold mine in Siberia
where 15 people died after a dam collapsed were arrested on Sunday, the
Russian authorities said.

“The head of the gold mining company Sissim and the manager and foreman of
the mining site have been arrested,” the Investigative Committee, a powerful
inquiry agency, said in a statement.

The three have been taken to Krasnoyarsk for questioning, it said.

In addition to the 15 deaths, six people were listed as missing on
Saturday after the dam on the Seiba River burst and flooded cabins where
workers were living.

The Investigative Committee said raids had been carried out on the
company’s premises.

“Violations committed during gold mining” were being considered as the
lead cause of the accident, it said.

Officials said the dam had been built in breach of safety rules and
claimed that the authorities were not even aware of its existence.

A search operation has been launched but bad weather has prevented the use
of aviation, the Emergency Situations Ministry said.

The tragedy drew fresh attention to mining practices in Russia, which
holds some of the largest gold reserves in the world.

It extracted nearly 300 tonnes last year, mostly by large companies.

Other production comes from artisanal teams involved in alluvial
production, using techniques that environmentalists say badly damages river
life.

BSS/AFP/ARS/1532 hrs