Two bodies found, 18 still missing in southwestern China coal mines

[News_Editor]

Two bodies found, 18 still missing in southwestern China coal mines

2011-06-02 19:46:46 GMT+7 (ICT)

GUIYANG, CHINA (BNO NEWS) -- At least two people have been confirmed dead, while Chinese officials said another 18 remain unaccounted for in two flooded mines in the southwest region of the country.

Over four days ago, flooding trapped several people in a coal mine in Guiyang, the capital city of Guizhou Province, state-run media Xinhua reported, adding that rescue workers recovered a body while clearing sludge inside the flooded shaft on Thursday.

According to reports, high density of gas made rescue efforts more difficult, as 10 miners remain trapped. On Tuesday night, the first body was found.

Preliminary investigations indicate that operations at the coal mine, which has an annual production capacity of 150,000 tons, were carried out with legal production licenses but did not work in accordance with approved designs,

In a separate incident at the border of Dushan County in Guizhou and Nandan County in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, eight workers have been reportedly trapped in another coal mine for more than 40 hours.

Luo Guoguang, a deputy head of Dushan County told the news agency that narrow shafts and high density of gas have also hampered search and rescue efforts, adding that four owners had been arrested as the mine was operating illegally.

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.

One of the worst mining accidents in China in recent years happened in November 2009 when 104 workers were killed after several explosions at a coal mine in Heilongjiang province.

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