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Search for Five Trapped Miners in China Speeds Up, Xinhua Says

19 October 2010 03:39 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. The search for five trapped coal miners in central Chinaâ€™s Henan province has accelerated after underground transport, power and ventilation systems were restored, Xinhua News agency reported, APA reports quoting â€œBusiness Weekâ€.
About 300 rescuers are pushing through 2,500 metric tons of coal dust that accumulated in the Oct. 16 gas blast, trapping the miners, Xinhua said yesterday evening, citing Du Bo, deputy chief of the rescue headquarters. The number of confirmed deaths increased to 32 after six bodies were found, it said.
The mining disaster follows a blast at a pit in Henanâ€™s Pingdingshan city in June that killed 48 workers in the countryâ€™s most fatal coal mining accident this year. Rescuers are now scrambling to disperse a buildup of explosive gases at Pingyu, official China National Radio said.
Chilean President Sebastian Pinera has offered to help China in the Pingyu accident, saying his country has learnt lessons from its rescue of 33 miners trapped underground for more than two months, Agence France-Presse reported on Oct. 16.
The Pingyu blast blocked 170 meters (186 yards) of passageway, causing an accumulation of flammable gases and hindering efforts to retrieve the workers, China National Radio said. A similar incident happened at the same mine in August 2008, according to the report.
A total of 276 miners were in the pit when the incident happened, of whom 239 of them managed to escape immediately, the work safety administration said. The missing miners seem to have â€œslimâ€ hope of survival, Xinhua reported yesterday.
China, the worldâ€™s largest coal producer, has the worst coal-mine safety record, with an average of seven deaths each day in accidents last year. That compares with 18 deaths for an entire year in the U.S., the second-biggest producer.
The Pingdingshan incident in June was the worst mining disaster since more than 100 died in an explosion in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang in November last year.