Published 13:05 IST, December 17th 2019
China: At least 14 dead, 2 trapped after gas outburst in coal mine
14 miners trapped in China as gas explosion traps two miners underground. A coal and gas explosion caused the disturbance, seven miners were rescued from there.
- World News
- 2 min read
During a coal and gas outburst in a mine in southwest China, 14 miners lost their lives on Tuesday. According to reports, two workers were still trapped underground and rescue work and investigations into the explosion are underway. The accident took place at Guanglong Coal Mine in Anlong County.
Seven miners were rescued
The explosion that is being termed as an accident took place around 1:30am (local time). The accident occurred when 23 workers were working underground according to local media. Seven workers have already been rescued safely from the site while 14 were confirmed dead. Two miners still remain trapped underground. China is the world's largest coal producer and therefore mining accidents are common in China. Though the number of incidents at coal mines has reduced.
China is the world's largest producer of coal but is also the largest consumer. It is the largest user of coal-derived electricity. China's share in the coal energy mix has fallen in recent years but its share still remained 60 per centn in 2017. While domestic coal production has fallen, coal imports have been increased to compensate for this fall in domestic production. As of 2019, China has also started constructing coal-based power stations in other countries.
Coal still remains the main source of energy in China, China's largest Coal mine is located in Inner Mongolia. The coal mine has an annual capacity of 20 million tonnes of crude coal and is believed to be operational for the next few decades. Coal power that is generated in China is distributed by the State Power Grid Corporation.
Updated 13:47 IST, December 17th 2019