Methane may have ignited due to safety violation at Solikamsk mine
MOSCOW. Dec 22 (Interfax) - A violation of the technological process may have caused an ignition of methane at the mine in Solikamsk, were nine miners are cut off by the fire, a source in the region's technical oversight service told Interfax.
"A tentative cause of the fire is a methane ignition, which may have happened both due to natural processes and possible miscalculations in security of mining on the site," the source said.
According to the source, an air shock wave is generated and the atmosphere pressure is increased nine-fold during an explosion of a mixture of methane, gas and dust in a mine.
"A wave of compressed air usually precedes the fire front while a blast wave is spreading around the mine. When it encounters an explosive gas mixture, it compresses it, and it is being ignited by the fire," the source said.