Flooded coal mine traps 152 in northern China

Beijing - At least 152 workers were trapped after a coal mine under construction flooded in northern China on Sunday, state media reported.

The accident at the Wangjialing mine in Shanxi Province took place at 2:30 pm local time (0730 GMT), the semi-official China News Service reported.

About 109 workers were thought to have escaped, the official Xinhua news agency quoted the provincial work safety administration as saying.

The Wangjialing mine is a key project approved by the provincial government, the report said. Once in operation, the mine is expected to produce 6 million tons of coal annually

Shanxi, a major coal producing area in China, has a poor mine safety record. In November, 12 workers died after an explosion at a mine in Shanxi's Jiexiu City.

The local government has been attempting to rein in the industry by closing small and medium-sized mines and reducing the overall number of mines through mergers.

However, this latest accident is a reminder that there are ongoing safety concerns at even large government-approved mines.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/316154,flooded-coal-mine-traps-152-in-northern-china.html.