In Pro-Russian separatist controlled eastern Ukraine, coal mining remains one of the key strategic ressources. In Donetsk, a city founded on mining, 45 mines were still active at the beginning of the current crisis.

In the Donbass region, a coal-rich basin, hundred of mines are still producing 70% of Ukraine’s coal. Coal is used in steel factories and power plants all over Ukraine that have been designed to use only the specific quality of coal in the Donbass. The Soviet hero Stakhanov was from Donbass. Miners work hard, but get a good salary and can retire after 20 years. Accidents are numerous though, and the work is exhausting and unhealthy. Miners see themselves as an elite, and mining has become a family tradition in Donbass.
Coal mining is also the foundation of the Eastern Ukrainian identity. While Ukrainian nationalism was founded on an agro-pastoralian ukrainian-speaking culture in the western part of the country, the eastern part was developing a mining, industrial, soviet and russian speaking identity that made its presence felt from the start of the recent conflict between these two Ukraines.

However, coal miners have not been involved with the separatists. Proud, hard working people, they have kept the mines operating all through the crisis.
Some mines, like Tchelunskinsev, in the Petrovskyi district in the western district of Donetsk, are still operating despite the fact the the mine is under the constant shelling from ukrainian army artillery, besieging the city.

Serguei Belaiev, the vice-director, himself an ex-miner, regularly goes down with the 300 miners. The mine have been in operation since 1913 and still produce 1000 tons of coal a day. In besieged Donetsk, coal is vital for power plant and heating in a region where winter is brutally cold.

The miners dig for coal at 880 meters under the surface. The shelling can’t hit them down there, but vital surface installations like elevators and ventilation are vulnerable. The miners dig with machines, reinforce the galleries, and make sure the dangerous coal dust and methane gas does not explode.

Around mid-day, the big telephone rang at the bottom of the mine. Sergei became suddenly very grave : the Ukrainian shelling had just cut the electricity ; the elevator wasn’t functioning any more and the ventilation system was down. In less than two hours, there wouldn’t be any oxygen to breathe in the mine.

Sergei lead the miners through the maze of galleries to a steep emergency gallery. He hoped to reach level -500 where a cable car could still be functionning. The miners walked in line through the steep narrow tunnel, and managed to reach the level. They boarded the rusted cable car and arweree taken to level -270. They travelled another 8 km underground to reach another elevator. Finally this took them to the surface. As one of them said: ‘when you haven’t been down the mine, you can’t appreciate the sun.’ Sergei said: ‘the important thing is to make sure there is the same amount of time that you have out than you have in.’

These incidents happen quite often. As a result resentment has been created amongst the miners towards the Ukrainian government. Although they are not necessarily in favor of Russia or the pro-russian seperatists, the miners of Donbass have less and less confidence in the ability of president Poroshenko to solve the crisis; the rift between the eastern and western ukraine is deepening.

Text by Adrien Jaulmes/ Le FIGARO

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