At least 36 coal mine workers have been killed in two separate incidents in northeast China this week, raising fresh concerns of employees’ safety in the world’s biggest producer of coal.
Seventeen workers were killed in the Liaoning Province on Thursday when fire broke out in the afternoon at the Xingli coal mine in Huludao City. Till last night, 23 trapped miners were lifted out of the mine, of whom 13 died while the remaining 10 were hospitalised.
Another four miners were later lifted out of the mine, but died in hospital. Officials said the fire was caused by electric welding, and an investigation is under way.
In a separate incident, 19 miners who were trapped in a coal mine at the Xiangyang Coal Mine in Hegang City, Heilongjiang Province following an explosion on Wednesday, may have died since they had no chance of survival due to the excessive levels of poisonous gases and high temperatures, the rescue team said.
The explosion had resulted in a fire. 33 of the 52 miners managed to escape, while 19 others were trapped.
Chinese Xinhua reported that smoke was seen emitting from the mine on Friday.
Thirty-three of the 52 miners managed to escape while 19 others were trapped.
Excessive levels of poisonous gases and sustained high temperatures in the mine have made it extremely difficult to attempt a rescue mission, an expert panel said, adding that there was possibility of survival for the trapped miners.
Safety experts have proposed that the mouth of the mine be sealed off so that inert gases can be pumped into the shaft to douse the flames.
China’s mines have long been the world’s deadliest, though the number of casualties dropped last year.
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