Death toll rises to 30 in China coal mine accident

[News_Editor]

Death toll rises to 30 in China coal mine accident

2010-10-18 14:46:14 GMT+7 (ICT)

BEIJING (BNO NEWS) -- The death toll in central China's Henan Province after a coal mine gas leak risen to 30 on Monday, after four more bodies were found, officials said.

According to the Chinese Administration of Work Safety, seven workers are still trapped underground.

The accident happened on Saturday at a Pingyu Coal & Electric Co. Ltd.-owned coal mine in Yuzhou City. A total of 276 miners were working underground at the time of the accident.

According to the state-run Xinhua news agency, an initial investigation showed that more than 2,500 tonnes of coal dust was in the pit after the explosion. The accident occurred when workers were taking measures to prevent a gas explosion.

Safety conditions at mines in China have significantly improved in recent years, but they remain among the world's most dangerous with around 2,600 fatalities in 2009 alone.

Saturday's accident was not the first accident at the mine, which was the scene of an explosion on August 1, 2008 that left 23 workers dead.

On October 8, nine people were killed, including a rescue team, when they suffocated to death in a disused air shaft at a lead zinc ore mine in central China.

In November 2009, 104 miners were killed after several explosions at a coal mine in China's Heilongjiang province.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2010-10-18