As rescue work concluded on Tuesday, the death toll from the
colliery gas blast in southwest China's Guizhou Province has been
confirmed at 16.
The explosion took place at the Shagou Coal Mine in Liupanshui
City at 4:55 AM on November 18 while 25 miners were working
underground. Nine of the trapped miners escaped. The bodies of the
other 16 miners were found by rescuers.
The colliery has three mining systems underground with a
designed annual output of 30,000 tons. When the colliery runs at
full capacity, the concentration of carbon monoxide rises to an
extent that is too high for the ventilation system to work
effectively.
Operations continued despite the local supervisor's warnings. A
high concentration of gas was the direct cause of the tragedy,
experts at the site said.
Families of each dead miner have been given 200,000 yuan
(US$25,000) in compensation, a local government source said.
Rescue efforts and investigations were concluded on Tuesday
afternoon.
(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2005)