An explosion at a state-run coal mine in China's remote northeast killed 134 workers and left another 15 trapped underground, state press said yesterday, as frantic rescue efforts were underway for survivors.
A total of 221 miners were underground when the cave-in occurred about 9:40pm on Sunday at the Dongfeng coal mine, located near Qitaihe City in Heilongjiang Province.
One-hundred-and-thirty-four miners have been confirmed killed and 15 remained trapped, China's state-run radio reported.
PHOTO: REUTERS
However after a day of intense rescue efforts, 72 survivors had been pulled from the rubble, China National Radio said.
Xinhua news agency said a rescue team of 269 people was involved in the search for those still trapped, and that not all hope was lost.
"There are possibilities for the survival of other trapped miners," Xinhua said, citing officials at rescue headquarters.
Investigators said the accident was caused by a coal-dust explosion, which knocked out all the ventilation systems in the pit, according to Xinhua.
A coal-dust explosion is often caused when there is a gas blast, which ignites the coal dust suspended in the air or stuck on walls, Rui Susheng from the China Coal Research Institute said.
Heilongjiang Longmei Group, a mining conglomerate of four major state-owned coal businesses with a registered capital of 13 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion), owns the Dongfeng mine, Xinhua said.
The Longmei Group, the second biggest coal producer in China, had a combined output of 27 million tonnes of coal in the first half of this year and intends to list publicly in Hong Kong next year, according to previous state press reports.
Although many of the accidents in China's coal industry occur in illegal mines, the work-safety watchdog said the Dongfeng mine was fully licensed.
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