At least 11 miners have been killed, with seven others injured and 16 trapped underground following an explosion on Thursday at a state-run coal mine in western Ukraine, authorities said.

According to the State Service for Emergencies, the blast occurred at the depth of 550 meters in the Stepova mine in Lviv region at around 12.46 p.m. local time(10:46 GMT).

A total of 172 miners were in the mine when the blast struck, with 34 of them working underground in the epicenter of the explosion.

Mykhailo Volynets, the head of the Ukrainian Independent Union of Miners, said that two of the injured are in critical condition.

A team of 50 rescuers is working on the scene in an effort to bring the trapped miners to the surface.

The exact cause of the accident is unknown, but initial reports suggested it may have been caused by methane gas explosion.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and Energy and Coal Minister Igor Nasaly are heading to the site of the blast.

Source: Xinhua