Gas explosion kills 42 coal miners, 66 still missing

• Source: Global Times
• [13:55 November 21 2009]
• Comments

Relatives of coal miners come to the accident site to wait for further information in the Xinxing Coal Mine owned by the Heilongjiang Longmei Mining Holding Group in Hegang City, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Nov. 21, 2009. An explosion accident occurred here at around 2:30 a.m. Saturday while 528 miners were working under the mine. (Xinhua photo)

Death toll of a gas outburst accident in a coal mine in Hegang City, in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, has risen to 42, while 66 other miners were still missing.

The rescue headquarters said that gas outburst caused the explosion in the Xinxing Coal Mine owned by the Heilongjiang Longmei Mining Holding Group.

The company said that 528 miners were working under the mine, when the explosion occurred at around 2:30 a.m. Saturday.

The company has updated the number of miners who escaped the accident to 419 from the previously reported 389.

Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have made instructions on the rescue work. Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang is on way to the site.

The Hegang subsidiary of Longmei is a state-owned mining company with an annual coal output of 12 million tons. Its mining area has a verified coal reserve of 3 billion tons.

Xinhua/agencies