Five miners have been killed an underground coal mine explosion in Romania.
The methane explosion at the Uricani coal mine killed the five as they were working to repair an electric transformer on Saturday, according to the Romania Insider.
Approximately 800 miners work at the state owned mine, which had been scheduled for shut down in 2018.
Prosecutors have already opened an investigation into the incident.
Romanian Labor minister Ian Botis said “I want to assure the families that we are by their side. I come from a family of miners, my father was a miner, it’s tragic that such accidents happen but you know as well as I do that such accidents will occur as long as there is mining.”
