Moscow, December 24, 2009: Nine people were killed in the mine blast near Russia’s Urals city of Nizhny Tagil, Russian media reported Thursday, citing local sources.

All victims’ bodies have been found, with seven of them already identified.

The blast occurred at 11:35 Moscow time (0835 GMT) on Wednesday at the Yevstyuninskaya iron ore mine owned by Russia’s Evraz Group, one of Russia’s largest mining and steelwork companies.

At the time of the explosion, 114 out of 123 workers in the mine were evacuated safely.

A criminal investigation into the blast has been launched, citing safety violations during the transportation of explosives. All operations at the mine were halted.

A late January incident at the mine this year saw some 15 workers hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning.