Thirteen trapped in Russia's Pioneer gold mine: Report

Thirteen miners were trapped after a rock fall in a gold mine in Russia's Amur region, Russia's Ministry of Emergency Situations said on Tuesday.

"Communications are being restored and mechanized clearing of the transport slope is being carried out," the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app.

The accident occurred at the Pioneer mine, one of the largest gold mines in Russia based on processing capacity, Russian media reported. The mine is located in the Eastern Siberia Amur region that borders China to the south.

The mine is owned by the London-listed Russian gold miner Petropavlovsk, which in 2022 filed for administration after Western sanctions on Gazprombank, its main lender and the sole buyer of its gold, left it struggling to repay debt.