Reuters AlertNet Lite - Death toll in China mine blast rises to 28

Reuters AlertNet Full site

NEWSDESK

Death toll in China mine blast rises to 28

07 May 2007 09:54:21 GMT
Source: Reuters

BEIJING, May 7 (Reuters) - Rescuers recovered another five bodies trapped by a coal mine blast in northern China, bringing the death toll in the disaster to 28, state media reported on Monday.

Another two miners were still missing after the explosion, which ripped through the Pudeng mine in Shanxi, China's largest coal-producing province, in the latest accident to hit the world's deadliest mining industry.

"Rescue work is quite difficult since the shaft is still filled with smoke," Xinhua news agency quoted Zhao Tiechui, director of the State Administration for Coal Mine Safety Supervision, as saying.

The mine had been ordered to suspend production but work there had resumed illegally, Xinhua said.

The mine owner and several managers were under surveillance, and provincial officials have ordered an investigation into the explosion.

China has been struggling to clean up its mining industry, which last year killed more than 4,700 people, but owners continue to push production beyond safe limits to reap profits and meet the country's surging appetite for fuel.

One miner, digging coal about 500 metres (1,600 feet) from the site of the Pudeng blast, described being knocked off his feet by the force of the explosion.

"I was knocked over by a huge wave, but I knew I had to get up and go," Xinhua quoted Li Junping as saying. "It was like I was drunk and I finally tumbled out of the mine."

The Pudeng explosion was the second mine accident within a week in Shanxi, which produces about 600 million tonnes of coal a year. On Monday, a blast in an illegal mine in Yuxian county killed 14 people.

AlertNet news is provided by

Email this article Send comments

Countries

Small country map
© 2004 Europa Technologies Ltd.

Reset map

• China profile
· View map

MORE >>

NGO latest

• Christian Aid joins green.tv
Christian Aid - UK

• Christian Aid comment on 5 April Gleneagles event
Christian Aid - UK

• Governments must invest to help poor people adapt to climate change
CARE International - UK

• Beware of hidden strings on EU's offer on trade
Christian Aid - UK

• Australians see little improvement for children in developing countries
ChildFund Australia

MORE >>

Latest news

• Death toll in China mine blast rises to 28

• HK invents pain-free device to measure blood sugar

• Challenges ahead as ADB seeks to redefine itself

• No chance of survivors from Kenya plane - Cameroon

• No chance of survivors from Kenya plane - Cameroon

MORE >>

Last updated:Mon May 7 09:58:07 2007