39 Feared Dead in Northeast China Gas Explosion

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, July 04, 2002

39 Feared Dead in Northeast China Gas Explosion

A coal mine in northeast China's Jilin Province was hit by a major gas explosion early Thursday morning and 39 miners were trapped underground and feared dead.

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A coal mine in northeast China's Jilin Province was hit by a major gas explosion early Thursday morning and 39 miners were trapped underground and feared dead.

The blast occurred at 2:12 am Thursday at Fuqiang Coal Mine, of Songshu Town in Baishan City of Jilin, local sources said, giving no further details.

While rescue work was still going on at the scene, there was little chance for those trapped miners to survive, an official with the Jilin Provincial Coal Mine Safety Inspection Bureau said.

Rescue work underway

Four rescue teams had been formed and rescue work was in full swing after a massive gas blast at the Fuqiang Coal Mine, local authorities said.

Jilin Deputy Governor Li Jieche and a team of officials had arrived at the scene to organize the rescue work, local sources said.

However, rescuers were unable to enter the shaft due to serious damage from the blast to the shaft entrance, plus excessive levels of carbon monoxide in the shaft, the sources said. The main fan in an auxiliary shaft had been started to help ventilation in the main shaft, they added.

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