KIEV, April 27 (Xinhua) -- At least 14 workers were killed in a coal mine accident that occurred in the non-government-controlled area in Ukraine's eastern Luhansk region on Thursday, a Ukrainian official said on Saturday.

Pavlo Lysyanskyi, a representative of Ukraine's ombudsman in Donetsk and Lugansk regions, wrote on Facebook that the bodies of 13 miners have been brought to the surface.

The body of another victim is still trapped underground.

Earlier in the day, Lysyanskyi told local 112 TV-channel that the series of methane gas explosions at "Skid-Carbon" mine were caused by violation of safety rules.

Ukraine's mines are believed to be among the most dangerous in the world due to their outdated equipment and high concentration of methane levels.