Henan, 20 miners killed and 17 trapped after a collapse
Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Twenty miners were killed and 17 others remain trapped in a tunnel after a gas explosion in a mine in Yuzhou (Henan). The explosion occurred this morning at 6:00 (local time) and rescue teams found 20 dead at 13.00. But the 17 survivors have not yet been located.
The news of the accident and death of miners is reported in a few lines from Xinhua, only days after the global media exposure on the rescue of 33 miners from Chile.
According to some studies, the coal mines in China are by far the most dangerous in the world. Official figures speak of 2900 deaths a year. But unofficial sources say that there are at least 20 thousand victims of accidents in mines in China a year: their actual number is impossible to certify because the owners, helped by people in the government, whitewash every mining accident and prevent the media from reporting on accidents.
Often the same families of the victims are silenced by threats of retaliation or behind payments of 30-40 thousand Yuan (about 3-4 thousand euro) for the death of their loved-one in a mine.
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23/07/2008
