Three Workers Asphyxiated in Well in Stavropol Region

Three people died in a well — and for this, it was not the workers but the enterprise management who received real prison terms. In the Shpakovsky District, the court found guilty the executive director of a commercial organization, as well as the head and chief engineer of a structural unit in the death of three employees.

The tragedy occurred on April 3, 2025, on a field near the village of Kazinka. As reported by the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Stavropol Krai, two workers from an agricultural enterprise descended into a well of a 7-kilometer pipeline, where they were conducting repairs — pumping out liquid organic fertilizers and replacing a valve. The environment was gas-hazardous.

During the work, the men suddenly fell ill — they lost consciousness and fell to the bottom of the well. A mechanical engineer who was nearby tried to help his colleagues but also was poisoned by gases and lost consciousness. All three died on the spot.

The examination established that the cause of death was poisoning by hazardous gases.

The investigation concluded that the tragedy occurred due to criminal inaction by the management. The executive director, head, and chief engineer did not ensure compliance with labor protection requirements, did not monitor working conditions, and did not provide workers with personal protective equipment.

The court deemed the evidence gathered by the Shpakovsky Interdistrict Investigative Department sufficient. All three defendants were found guilty under Part 3 of Article 143 of the Russian Criminal Code — violation of labor protection requirements resulting in death.

The court sentenced each of them to 2 years of imprisonment to be served in a colony-settlement.

The verdict has not yet entered into legal force.