A sudden coal and gas eruption in east China's Jianxin
Province on Saturday night has left one miner dead, two injured and
18 others trapped, said a spokesman with the provincial work safety
watchdog on Sunday.
The accident occurred at 11:45 p.m. Saturday in Shangtang
Township, Fengcheng City when 283 miners were working
underground.
Twenty-one of them, 14 gas drainage workers and seven
electricians, were at the tunneling working surface when the
outburst took place. One was confirmed dead and two others were
injured.
As of 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, 262 people and the two injured have
escaped safely, said the spokesman.
The rescue work is going on.
The Jianxin Coal Mine, established in 1958 and and affiliated to
Jiangxi Coal Group Co., is a large state-owned mine with an annual
capacity of more than 80,000 tons.
The mine had previously experienced two deadly accidents in
November 2003 and August 2006, which claimed 49 and five lives
respectively.?
(Xinhua News Agency October 14, 2007)