Confirmed Deaths: 97
Total Believed Dead: 97
Total Injured and Dead: 101
Provinces Involved: 6
Average Death per Day: 3.3
30 March
Hunan Province
Twelve miners were killed in a gas explosion at the Xianghuatai Coal Mine in Lianyuan City. The miners were working underground draining water when the explosion occurred.
The cause of the accident is reportedly unknown.
19 March
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
Six coal miners were killed by an explosion at a coal refinery run by the No. 104 regiment of the Xinjiang Construction Corps No. 12 Division. The explosion occurred at around 7:15 pm. Two miners reportedly escaped. By the next day, all the coal mines of the No. 12 Division were reportedly ordered to suspend production, and will only be allowed to resume production when permission is granted from the divisions supervisory committee on coal mine production.
8 March
Shandong Province
A cassion at the Dongda Coal Mine in Tengzhou city collapsed, killing seven miners and injuring four others. The accident occurred at 1:30 am, and rescue efforts ended at 10:20 am the following day.
According to the local coal mine supervision authorities, the accident occurred due to worker errors. They claim that the miner operating the caisson was operating it without supervision and in violation of the instructions.
Yunnan Province
A cave-in at an abandoned tin mine in Gejiu City trapped twelve miners, killing ten. Two miners were rescued and two bodies were recovered on 18 March, and the remaining 8 bodies were recovered 21 March. The group of miners were farmers who had allegedly illegally entered the mine searching for tin ore.
16 March
International-Turkey
Five Chinese miners were killed by an explosion while attempting to dig a mine shaft at the Karadon Mine in the Black Sea province of Zonguldak in Turkey.
14 March
Gansu Province
A mine collapse killed six miners in the Liangzhou district of Wuwei City. The accident occurred around 5:00 pm, and was caused by an explosives detonation in a nearby coal mine, according to the Provincial Coal Mine Safety Supervision Bureau.
12 March
Guizhou Province
A gas explosion at the Huaxing Coal Mine in Yangjiawan Town, Bijie City, caused a mine collapse that killed fourteen people. One miner survived the collapse. The explosion was reportedly caused by a malfunctioning electric exhaust fan.
Huaxing Coal Mine is privately owned, and was allegedly operating without an official license. The police are searching for the owners.
7 March
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
Nine miners were killed in a flooding accident while working below ground at 8:50 am. Twenty five miners managed to escape, and fifteen were rescued the following day. The mine was owned by the drilling company Xinjiang Hami Coal Corporation.
4 March
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
A coal mine fire killed six miners at the Kalatuzi Coal Mine in Zepu County. Three miners escaped the fire. Rescue workers experienced trouble recovering the bodies due to high concentrations of poisonous gas and high temperatures. The fire was most likely due to the burning of an air compressor which ignited pit props and coal according to mine officials.
1 March
Shanxi Province
A coal mine gas blast killed twenty eight miners in Jiexiu City at the Jinshanpo Coal Mine. It occurred at night while thirty two miners were working underground. Four workers escaped the blast.
Violations of work safety rules and illegal operations are blamed, according to an investigation team from the Bureau of Work Safety. They found that the manager of the mine had organized miners to work underground without the proper government permission, and thus avoiding a yearly safety inspection.
Before the blast, there had been a power blackout and the ventilation system stopped working. The mine manager ordered the miners to keep working. The lack of ventilation caused a build up of gas, which led to the explosion at around 11:00pm.
This accident has caused local officials in Shanxi to once again urge local mining enterprises to enhance safety measures. Yet again they also warned that any coal mining without express government permission would be severely punished. The manager of the mine is currently being questioned by the police.
According to one source, "The accident was totally avoidable," said Yan Yanliang, director of Jiexiu City Bureau of Work Safety. "All the miners should have been withdrawn from the mine after the electricity was cut." ("Violation of rules blamed for deadly gas blast," Xinhua, 04 March 2004.)