Liaoning, explosion in a mine: 11 dead

Rescuers managed to extract 23 survivors, who were trapped throughout the night. There are still two missing. Accidents in Chinese mines continue.


Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - 11 miners are dead and 23 were trapped for hours in an iron mine, which exploded yesterday in the Liaoning province, in the north-east of the country, reports the official government news agency, Xinhua.

The explosion occurred yesterday, while the miners were moving explosives down a shaft one kilometre deep. The explosion destroyed the lift system. Rescuers managed to extract the survivors this morning, between 5am and 7 am. Nine of them are wounded, while two others are still missing.

Mines in China are often the scene of fatal accidents. In May of last year, 18 workers died as a result of a gas leak in a mine in the central Hunan province. In December 2016, explosions in two coal mines killed at least 59 people. The previous month, rescuers had recovered 33 lifeless bodies from a coal mine in Chongqing.

In general, work safety standards in China are very low. According to official statistics, in 2015, 598 workers died in the coal mines. However, many human rights groups believe that the real figures are much higher, since many incidents are not reported due to fear of closure of the facilities.