13 killed, 3 missing in Henan coal mine accident

A total of 13 people have been confirmed dead and another three are still missing in an accident in the No 12 Mine of Pingdingshan Tian'an Coal Mining Co in Pingdingshan city, Central China's Henan province, according to a statement released by the company on Sunday afternoon.

A coal and gas outburst caused by the sudden release of built-up pressure occurred at around 3 pm on Friday as 425 people were working in the mine, the city's emergency management bureau said on Saturday.

A trapped coal miner rescued on Saturday night told Jimu News, a news outlet in Hubei province, that at the time of the incident, the miners heard a very loud sound like dull thunder, and then ash came billowing like a volcanic eruption.

"Finally, I and about 20 workers ran to the refuge chamber around 200 meters away," he said. "After many hours of waiting, I was finally rescued."

Some of the survivors have been sent to the Pingmei Shenma Medical Group General Hospital for treatment, according to Jimu.

"The vital signs and emotions of the workers in our department are relatively stable," said Wang Yong, a senior doctor of the general surgery department of the hospital. "They are currently in further observation, treatment and recovery.

"Most of the patients said they felt a little discomfort and a little dizziness," said Chen Zutao, vice-president of the hospital. "This is mainly because they inhaled some harmful gases, and there was a lack of oxygen.

"We are currently treating them with hyperbaric oxygen treatment in response to the situation," he added.

In view of the current severe production safety situation, the company has suspended operations at its 13 subordinate mines, the statement said.

Special safety risk identifications and assessments have been carried out in these mines to check for problems and formulate corresponding control measures.

The local government is making all-out efforts to organize a search and rescue plan for the missing people, the city's emergency management bureau said.

Leaders of the provincial government and related departments, including emergency, industry and information technology, and the provincial bureau of the National Mine Safety Administration arrived after the accident and set up the rescue headquarters on-site to analyze and assess the underground environment and coordinate the overall rescue operations.

A specific rescue plan for the missing people will be launched, a comprehensive inspection of safety production will be conducted throughout the city, and the reason for the accident will be thoroughly investigated.

Police have detained the person in charge of the mine.

Coal and gas outbursts are a phenomenon where broken coal and gas suddenly erupt from a mine in large quantities.

Usually, a large amount of gas gushes out, sometimes reversing the wind flow, and the range of spread can reach several mining areas or even an entire mine, depending on the strength of the outburst and the mine's ventilation capacity.

Cang Wei contributed to this story.