At least 11 people were killed
today in the second deadly coal mine accident to hit China in two days,
pointing to continuing safety issues in the industry despite a major decline in
deaths among miners in recent years.
The official Xinhua News
Agency said 19 people were working in a mine in the southern province of
Guizhou when an explosion ripped through the shaft early in the morning.
Investigators are looking into the cause of the blast at the Songlin mine in the Guizhou town of Songhe. This blast follows an explosion and fire earlier yesterday morning in the northeastern province of Liaoning in which 26 miners were killed.
Another 50 miners were injured
in the disaster, which broke out in the complex run by the state-owned Fuxin
Coal Corp. 30 were said to have had
serious burns, eight were in intensive care and four were still in danger of
dying. Despite the generally better safety reputation of state-owned mines, a
number of deadly accidents have struck Fuxin's mines in recent years, including
a 2005 blast that killed 214 people.
China's mines are the world's
deadliest, although a push to boost safety has considerably lowered death tolls
in accidents. Just over 1,000 deaths in 604 coal mining accidents were reported
in 2013, down from more than 6,000 per year a decade ago.
At the same time, demand for
coal has plateaued as the Chinese economy decelerates from the headlong rush of
the last decade.
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