Four miners remain trapped Sunday after a coal gas explosion killed 19 miners in a mine in southwestern China. State media reported that, a total of 28 miners were working when the underground blast occurred Saturday at the Xiangshui coal mine, in Guizhou Province.
Rescuers were attempting to reach the trapped miners, Yin Zhihua, vice mayor of Liupanshui city, was quoted as saying.
Rescue teams were forced to wait until dangerous gases had receded before pulling out five miners. One of the rescued miners was in a critical condition.
The coal mine, operated by Pannan Coal Exploitation Co, Ltd, is located in Panxian county of the coal-rich Liupanshui city. It went into operation in 2006 with a designed annual output of 4 million tonnes. The mine sits on a coal deposit of 1.3 billion tonnes.
Coal produced by Xiangshui feeds Pannan Power Station in the region, which is considered a key part of the government's strategy to send electricity from its resource-rich western region to the power-hungry industry belts in the east.
China is the biggest consumer of coal in the world.
China has one of the world's deadliest coal mine industries, with 1,146 miners killed in 650 mining accidents as of mid-October this year. Safety improvements have reduced deaths in recent years, but regulations are often ignored and accidents are still common.
Some coal mines were ordered to suspend production due to safety problems, but they illegally resumed production without tackling problems.
The coal mines which have failed to meet the safety standards should not be reopened and those who abuse their power to lower overhaul standards would be punished, the notice from the workplace safety authorities said.
Authorities intended to shut down 625 small mines this year to boost mining safety.
In August, a mine blast in southwestern China's Sichuan Province killed 44 people, the highest single accident toll for the industry in three years.
In September, 20 miners died after a steel cable broke in a coal mine in northwestern China's Gansu Province.
Sunday 25 November 2012
http://www.timeslive.co.za/world/2012/11/25/19-dead-4-missing-in-china-coal-mine-accident
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