Chinese coal mine fire kills 11
04 March 2013
Eleven miners have been killed in a coal mine fire located in Northern China, according to Xinhua, with two other miners reported missing. The news agency said the workers at the coal mine in Zhangjiakou city, Hebei Province, died from carbon monoxide poisoning when an air compressor caught fire underground.
Although some improvements have been made to the country’s safety regulations in recent years, they are often ignored and serious accidents remain common place in China’s mining industry. Last year alone, 1,384 people were killed in coal mine accidents.
Xinhua later said Zhang Heping, general manager of the Zhangkuang mine group in Zhangjiakou, was removed from his position following the incident.