Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) The toll of serious accidents in Chinese mines is starting to sound like a war bulletin. Only a few days after a grim accident in Dongfeng in Heilonjiang, dozens more people have been killed or are missing.
At 3.40, local time, yesterday 2 December, water flooded the tunnels of Sigou mine in Shisi city, Xin'an County in the central province of Henan, trapping 42 miners. Another 34 managed to escape. Rescuers are struggling to reach the trapped miners but no one knows if they are still alive. The mine, which produces 60,000 tons of coal per year, did not yet have the necessary safety papers in place.
Another explosion on the morning of 2 December killed 16 miners in Zhonghe mine in Shuicheng County, Liupanshui city in Guizhou province. The disaster could have been worse still because at least 31 miners were at work in the well.
Chinese mines are the most dangerous anywhere in the world and thousands of miners die each year in cave-ins, flooding and explosions. Despite highly publicized announcements of government measures to tackle the problem, accidents actually increased in 2005 (+ 8.5% in the first nine months of the year compared to 2004, according to official statistics) and the worst accidents in the last 50 years took place. A few days ago, at least 169 miners were killed in a blast in Dongfeng mine in Heilonjiang. In February, 220 people were killed in Sunjiawan mine in Liaoning. (PB)
