RFE/RL: The bodies of five coal miners who were killed when an explosion ripped through a mine in the Siberian region of Kemerovo on November 25 have been recovered and brought to the surface, local officials reported. The regional government’s office posted on November 28 that one team of rescue workers was still in the mine, pumping out water and stabilizing carbon monoxide levels.
RFE/RL: Nadezhda Sat’s story is a familiar one to residents of the south Siberian region of Tyva. Ten years ago, she took out a loan to buy a car. “There are expenses in Tyva that you simply must get a loan for,” she told RFE/RL’s Russian Service. “Such as a car. Public transportation is very bad — we don’t have commuter trains or trams or trolley buses. Even the normal buses run sporadically. And to simply save up money and buy a car is not realistic, particularly since cars keep getting more expensive.”