22 miners have died and seven are still missing in a flooded
coal mine in northeast China's Liaoning Province, the rescue headquarters
said on Sunday.
Rescue efforts are ongoing in the pit at the Fushun Mining
Group, a state-owned company in Fushun, a major industrial city
east of the provincial capital Shenyang, said sources with the
provincial safety watchdog.
The recovery work is expected to last two to three more days
because the rescuers have to clear away the debris of the collapsed
shafts in the flooding.
The miners were working on platform No. 73003 of the Laohutai
Mine when it was submerged at 8:44 PM on Saturday.
"The flood was followed by a gas leak and the platform was
blacked out after the gas density hit 1.76 percent," said Wang
Liancheng, a manager of the mine.
Rescuers restored the ventilation system on Sunday noon, which
brought the gas density below the danger level, set at 1.5 percent,
he said.
Ten teams, involving 120 people, are on the most recent rescue
mission that started at 9:30 last night.
Wang added that there are still risks of further flooding, gas
leaks, or a ceiling collapse.
Fushun Mining Group has dispatched more than 300 employees and
60 medical staff to inform and counsel the victims' families. A
doctor, a nurse, and at least one car are standing by at each
household in case of emergency, said Wang.
All of the 29 miners signed contracts with the coal mine which
provide cars to transport relatives from other parts of the country
in case of emergency, said Wang Jinyue, party secretary of the coal
mine.
The General Hospital of Fushun Mining Group and Laohutai
Hospital are ready to provide first aid to survivors.
The Fushun branch of China National Petroleum Corporation, the
country's largest producer and supplier of crude oil and natural
gas, donated two million yuan (US$258,398) to help the rescue
efforts.
The ill fated mine has been closed since the accident and will
undergo a safety overhaul before reopening.
Laohutai, which translates into "tiger's platform," is a 100
year old mine with 160 million tons of remaining coal reserves. It
employs 7,200 people and produces 3.35 million tons a year.
It is also one of the country's 45 most dangerous coal mines
because of the high risk of flooding, fire, and gas leaks.
Coal mine accidents killed 357 people in China in the first two
months of this year, according to the State Administration of Work
Safety.
4,746 people died in 2,845 coal mine accidents last year, an
average of 13 deaths a day.
(Xinhua News Agency March 12, 2007)