Chinese coal mine blast kills 18, traps 39
July 16, 2006 Filed Under: Coal Mining, Mining Services
A blast has killed 18 coal miners and trapped 39 at a colliery in northern Shanxi province, Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.
It said six other miners escaped the blast on Saturday afternoon. A seventh had been rescued and was being treated in hospital for carbon monoxide poisoning.
Accidents occur almost daily in China’s coal-mining industry. Last year nearly 6,000 miners died in 3,300 blasts, floods and other accidents, according to official figures.
(Reuters)