Rescuers search for two still missing after China mine blast kills 82

A person “responsible for” the company had been “placed under control in accordance with the law”, Xinhua news agency reported earlier.

Miners working at the Liushenyu shaft accused their employer of a lack of care, telling AFP they had to buy their safety helmets with their own money.

“From what I’ve seen, the management (at this company) is the worst,” said 58-year-old miner from Shandong, who has worked in several coal mines over the last three decades. 

Wishing to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions, they told AFP they had been working a morning shift on Friday and were not in the mine during the gas explosion.

“If we had been (working) a few hours later, it would have been us,” the 58-year-old said.

AFP has contacted Tongzhou Group for comment. 

The State Council, China’s cabinet, ordered nationwide “tough crackdowns on illegal and unlawful activities”, including the falsification of safety data, unclear headcounts of underground workers and illegal contracting.

Hundreds of rescuers rushed to the site after the explosion, with medical teams taking 128 people to hospital as of Saturday evening, loaded into ambulances and carried on stretchers.

Helmeted rescuers took turns descending into the shaft overnight to look for the two missing workers, sending down a robot to probe the mine conditions, state media reported.

“As long as there is hope, we will make every possible effort,” one rescuer told Xinhua.

The blast is the worst since 2009 when 108 people were killed in a mine explosion in northeastern Heilongjiang province.

The State Council, China’s cabinet, ordered nationwide “tough crackdowns on illegal and unlawful activities”, including the falsification of safety data, unclear headcounts of underground workers and illegal contracting.