Donetsk Oblast , Ukraine - April 2008 — “It was one of the worst accidents,” said 28-year old miner Vitaliy Kvetkovskiy, describing a methane gas explosion at Ukraine’s Zasiadko coal mine on November 18, 2007. “The last thing I remember is the loud blast and gas smell. The temperature in the mine had tremendously increased; it was burningly hot and I lost my consciousness. When my consciousness came back, I was in the pile of bodies and tried to get to the surface. I could hardly breathe because of dust. When I finally caught some fresh air, I fainted again.”

Kvetkovskiy was one of hundreds of injured miners; 89 miners lost their lives.

When news of the explosion broke, IRD immediately approached USAID with a proposal to provide emergency assistance for treatment and diagnostic of 36 miners hospitalized in the Donetsk Oblast Hospital of Occupational Diseases. With USAID’s funds, IRD procured and delivered devices for blood plasma filtration needed for immediate treatment of miners.

“This assistance with equipment from American people is invaluable. We will use it to increase the curative effect,” emphasized the chief doctor of Donetsk Oblast Hospital of Occupational Diseases, Evgeniy Gladchiuk. “The Ukrainian government allocated emergency funds for the cleanup and paid compensation to the families who suffered losses. However, in addition to cash compensations for the families of the dead and injured miners, there was an urgent need to provide effective emergency medical aid to those miners who survived the accident. Our facility needed proper diagnostic and rehabilitative treatment to help them return to normal lives. This where IRD came to the rescue and provided the needed equipment.”

Two more explosions occurred in the same mine during the first week in December, killing five and injuring 100. IRD promptly responded again with procurement of a pulmonary plethysmograph, which conducts a very sensitive lung pulmonary function tests and an ultrasound scanner, which is one of the most widely used diagnostic tools in modern medicine. “This equipment will help us to save lives not only of those who suffered in this accident but also the miners who are delivered to our hospitals with similar problems on daily basis, approximately 900 a year,” said Gladchiuk.

In 2008, IRD will continue helping the victims of the mining disaster at the Zasiadko coal mine and their families by supporting local health services in provision of psychosocial rehabilitation and counseling to people who are suffering from post traumatic syndrome and depression.