Rescue teams moved quickly to the Pioneer mine in the Amur region as part of a coordinated effort to assess and manage a developing emergency. A press briefing from the Ministry of Emergency Situations confirmed that the operation expanded with the arrival of an additional group of 13 specialists. The team reached the scene aboard an Mi-8 helicopter dispatched from the Khabarovsk Territory, underscoring the scale of the response and the readiness of regional crews to support each other during critical incidents.
On the ground, personnel from the Ministry of Emergency Situations teamed up with local mine rescue units to conduct a thorough situational assessment. They continued reconnaissance at the site, working to clear access slopes with underground equipment and to organize material handling on site with loading machines. In parallel, an operational headquarters for the Amur Region was stood up within the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergencies of Russia to ensure centralized command and rapid decision-making. To aid in the psychosocial aspects of the crisis, psychologists from the ministry were deployed to the facility to support responders and address the well-being of workers at the mine.
Additional support from other regions remained in motion, with rescuers from the Primorsky Territory continuing to mobilize toward the scene. A reserve pool of specialists from Kuzbass was placed on standby, ready to be deployed if the situation requires specialized expertise or additional manpower. The ongoing collaboration highlights the regional network of emergency services designed to respond to complex underground emergencies and to coordinate multi-territorial resources efficiently.
Earlier communications from operational services described a rock collapse at a mine site connected with a hydrometallurgical plant in the Amur region. The incident was reported to have affected an underground work area, and teams from the Neryungri militarized mountain rescue detachment were dispatched to evaluate conditions and establish a path forward for rescue and stabilization. Investigators and rescuers are working to clarify the underlying causes and circumstances surrounding the collapse as part of a comprehensive assessment process.
The regional government clarified that there was no confirmed contact with people believed to be trapped beneath rubble at the mine. This information frame helps responders prioritize search and rescue operations while continuing to monitor any changes in the prognosis for those potentially affected. The situation remains dynamic as teams implement safety protocols and refine their response based on evolving conditions underground.
In a separate but related note, authorities reported a separate fatal incident at the Oktyabrskaya mine near Leninsk-Kuznetsky in the Kemerovo region, where a strong fire caused multiple casualties. The event is being reviewed by regional officials and rescue services to determine the precise sequence of events and to implement lessons learned for future mine safety and emergency preparedness. These parallel lines of investigation and response underscore the importance of rapid mobilization, cross-regional cooperation, and robust safety measures in mining operations across the country.