Blog

Mine collapse in China kills five, 48 miners still missing | Reuters

BEIJING, Feb 23 (Reuters) - At least five people were killed and 48 others were still missing a day after the collapse of a coal mine in China's northern region of Inner Mongolia, state media reported on Thursday.

The open-pit mine operated by small local firm Xinjing Coal Mining Co collapsed in a landslide, leaving dozens of workers buried under a huge pile of debris half a kilometre (550 yards) wide and an estimated 80 m high, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Autonomous Haulage

Mine collapse in China kills five, 48 miners still missing | Reuters

Dramatic security camera footage aired on CCTV on Thursday showed an avalanche of rock and soil falling from one side of the mountain into the mine pit, burying a number of excavators and dump trucks.

Three hundred rescue workers were at the site using heavy machinery and rescue dogs to aid in their search for the trapped miners, state media said.

The National Health Commission said on Wednesday evening that six injured people had been rescued from the mine.

"I had just started work at 1:15 in the afternoon when I realised that rocks were falling from the mountain," a hospitalised miner told CCTV on Thursday.

"I saw that the situation was getting more and more serious, and an evacuation was organised, but it was too late, the mountain just collapsed."

[1/4]Rescue workers are seen at the site of a collapsed coal mine in Alxa League, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, in this screengrab taken from a video shot February 23, 2023. CGTN/Handout via REUTERS. Acquire Licensing Rights

Coal is a major source of energy in China but its mines are among the world's deadliest, largely due to lax enforcement of safety standards, despite repeated government orders for improvements in safety over the years.

President Xi Jinping on Wednesday ordered search and rescue efforts, state media reported, although a second landslide in the evening hampered the work to find survivors.

"We must make every possible effort to rescue the missing persons and treat the injured," Xi said.

Premier Li Keqiang also demanded a quick investigation into the cause of the collapse.

Local governments in several regions, including Inner Mongolia, Shanxi and Shaanxi, have ordered coal miners, especially open-pit mines, to immediately conduct safety checks and local authorities to carry out inspections following the collapse.

China's mines have been trying to boost output over the past year under a government call for greater supplies and stable prices. The government is estimated to have approved 260 million tonnes of new coal mining capacity in 2022. Inner Mongolia is the country's top coal-producing region.

The mine near the town of Alxa League was previously an underground mine. It was converted into an open-pit operation in 2012, according to state media. It had suspended production for three years before restarting in April 2021, state media added, though it did not provide further information regarding the cause of the closure.

Reporting by Andrew Hayley, Chen Aizhu, Bernard Orr and the Beijing newsroom; Editing by Jason Neely, Shounak Dasgupta, Tom Hogue and Raissa Kasolowsky

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Washington called on Azerbaijan to halt the military action it launched into Armenian-controlled Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday, while Russia urged both sides in the conflict to stop the bloodshed in the mountainous and disputed region.

Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers.

Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology.

The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs.

The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals.

Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile.

Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts.

Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks.

Mine collapse in China kills five, 48 miners still missing | Reuters

A Mining Dump Truck All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.