Cover-ups of mine accidents to be probed

Ministry of Emergency Management seeks to improve workplace safety

The Ministry of Emergency Management will roll out a campaign targeting cover-ups in the mining sector as it beefs up efforts to prevent major accidents, according to a media release from the ministry on Monday.

As its top task, the ministry will address prominent problems in workplace safety management and natural disaster control work to curb the occurrence of major accidents, said the release, which was made public following a conference of the ministry's leading officials.

It listed the mining sector as one of the ministry's priorities to enhance safety governance.

The ministry will crack down on violations at mines, it said. Aside from targeting mining beyond approved limits and illegal mining, it will also investigate deadly accidents that were deliberately concealed.

The campaign comes after a slew of cover-ups was unearthed across the country.

In one of the latest examples, a coal mine in Liaoning province was recently found to have concealed an accident late in June that left seven dead and another seven injured.

The operator of Fuxin Honglin Coal Mine in Fuxin city "deliberately concealed the incident" after it happened, local authorities said, without disclosing the details.

Separately, a provincial investigation team has been set up in Shanxi province following a media report from China News Weekly on June 29. The report said iron mining company Jingcheng in Daixian county had concealed the deaths of at least 17 miners in accidents over the past 15 years.

The media outlet confirmed the deaths based on its investigations in provincial-level regions, including Shanxi, Shaanxi province and Chongqing municipality. It said the company was also suspected of hiding other deadly accidents before 2007.

The Ministry of Emergency Management vowed to take more tailored precautionary measures to prevent accidents prone to occur during the flood season amid scorching temperatures.

Inspections of chemical enterprises with major safety hazards will be intensified. They will be offered more support to prevent accidents that may be triggered by high temperatures and thunder, it stated, adding that oil and gas tanks and high-pressure facilities containing extremely toxic substances are among the major targets.