Fifty three people were confirmed dead by yesterday in gas
explosion in a mine in North China's
Shanxi
Province which took place on Saturday.
Eleven more bodies were added at the coal mine in Mengnan Village
of Xiaoyi in Shanxi's Luliang Prefecture Monday.
A
total of 19 people were still missing and there is very little hope
that they could now be found alive, said sources with the
provincial government.
A
slightly injured miner is currently in custody at local hospital.
Altogether 15 miners have survived.
But the cause of the accident remains under investigation, said an
official with the Shanxi Provincial Bureau of Work Safety, surnamed
Shi.
A
joint investigation team consisting of officials from the Central
Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of
China (CPC), the Ministry of Supervision, the All-China Federation
of Trade Unions and the Work Safety Administration has arrived at
the site.
Officials urged the speeding up of all efforts to find those still
trapped underground.
Wang Xianzheng, director of the State Administration of Work
Safety, said it was clear that the private coal mine was operating
illegally, pointing out that its production license was
invalid.
According to Wang, the mine, whose manager is Meng Zhaokang,
disregarded an order of the Luliang Prefecture, which required all
coal mines in the area to stop production.
The accident is the third serious coal mining accident in Luliang
District since February. The previous two killed 11 people and 14
people separately.
Wang hinted that corruption could have been involved.
A
team of 84 rescuers, equipped with six ambulances, are continuing
rescue work.
A
total of 87 miners were working underground in the Mengnanzhuang
coal mine in Xiaoyi early on Saturday afternoon when the blast
occurred. Fifteen people are known to have survived the
disaster.
In
addition, a team of more than 500 soldiers and local police have
been deployed to guarantee security at the site.
Among the 72 dead and missing miners, 34 are local people. Local
officials have visited their families to offer comfort.
The remaining 38 are mainly from the northwestern province of
Shaanxi, and their families will be notified soon, said the
sources.
On
Sunday, the Shanxi provincial government ordered all coal mines to
take measures and give safety priority.
(China Daily March 25, 2003)