Society
Gas ignition kills 12 in north China coal mine
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-12-28 11:30
 |
Large Medium Small |
TAIYUAN: Twelve people died when a gas pocket ignited in a coal mine in north China's Shanxi Province, local officials said Monday.
The accident occurred at 11:30 pm Sunday when 16 miners were working in a shaft in the Donggou Colliery in Jiexiu City, said a spokesman with the Shanxi Provincial Work Safety Administration.
The mine was expanding its annual production capacity from the authorized 30 tonnes. The workers violated a safety rule that prohibited the demolition of a wall between the shaft and a disused area of the mine where the gas was accumulated in high density, the spokesman said.
The four survivors were under observation in hospital. Their conditions were unavailable.
