Fire breaks out at abandoned Kazakhmys mine shaft in Ulytau

September 23, 2026 at 09:58 AM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

A fire broke out at 13:05 on September 22 at shaft No. 45 of the Yuzhny Zhezkazgan mine, about 35 km from Satpayev. The blaze spread along wooden shaft lining to a depth of about 233 meters. The fire was fully extinguished by 19:35, and 152 miners from the adjacent shaft No. 65 were evacuated without injuries.

Key Facts

The fire started at 13:05 on September 22 at shaft No. 45 of the Yuzhny Zhezkazgan mine, about 35 km from Satpayev.
The fire spread along the wooden shaft lining to a depth of about 233 meters.
Shaft No. 45 has been out of operation since 2025.
152 miners were evacuated from the adjacent shaft No. 65, and no one was injured.
The fire was fully extinguished by 19:35 on September 22.

Fire and Response

The fire broke out at 13:05 on September 22 at shaft No. 45 of the Yuzhny Zhezkazgan mine, about 35 km from Satpayev. Wooden structures of the headframe on the surface caught fire first, and by 13:58 the surface fire was localized. The flames then spread along the wooden shaft lining to a depth of about 233 meters. Mine rescuers from the Zhezkazgan emergency rescue unit fought the fire in the shaft and cut off oxygen access. 25 rescuers and engineers conducted reconnaissance inside the mine.

Evacuation and Shutdown

Due to the fire threat, the adjacent shaft No. 65 was shut down. All 152 miners were brought to the surface, and no one was injured. The fire was fully extinguished by 19:35 on September 22. Shaft No. 45 has been out of operation since 2025.

Ownership and Context

The Yuzhny Zhezkazgan mine is part of the Zhezkazgantsvetmet production association, owned by Kazakhmys Corporation. In January 2026, businessman Nurlan Artykbayev, founder of the Qazaq Stroy construction group, became the owner of Kazakhmys. Previously, 70% of the company belonged to billionaire Vladimir Kim and 30% to his partner Eduard Ogay.