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Slovakia is in mourning following the death of 20 miners on 10 August in an explosion in a lignite mine in Handlová. The explosion occurred after a fire broke out in an area of the mine 330 metres underground. The victims who had gone down to put out the fire were killed by the shock wave. "It is the second worst accident ever to have occurred in Slovakia," reports the daily SME, which reminds its readers that the crash of a military transport plane caused 42 deaths in 2006. In the wake of the Handlová disaster, the Slovak government announced a day of national mourning and pledged to provide 45,100 euros compensation to each of the victims' families. In another report, the Bratislava daily also quotes a former miner at Handlová who insists that "the mine was always dangerous, and that it was a tragedy waiting to happen."
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