Communities Opposed to New Coal at Hunterston
Serious accidents in coal mines 2010
See also: Coal Mine accidents 2013 and archives for 2011, 2012
December 7th 2010
26 now confirmed dead in coalmine blast (China)
The death toll from a coalmine accident in Central China's Henan Province rose to 26 after officials confirmed that more workers than previously thought were trapped in the shaft.
Authorities updated the number after learning that a total of 46 workers were in the mine when a gas explosion struck a pit of the Juyuan Coal Industry Company in Mianchi county on Tuesday night.
Supervisors at the mine had reportedly attempted to hide the number of workers operating in the shaft, concealing four bodies to lower the casualty number.
"The management of this coalmine is unbelievably chaotic," said a China Central Television report.
Global TimesNovember 30th 2010
7 miners found dead in Hunan pit flood (China)
All seven miners trapped in a flooded coal mine in central China's Hunan province Tuesday were found dead early Friday, rescuers said. The bodies were found at the end of the shaft, indicating they were swept there by the gushing flood shortly after the accident happened at 11:38 p.m. Tuesday.
After the accident, a deputy mine manager led 27 workers safely out of the mine.
Despite all-out rescue efforts over the past two days, the spokesman said little progress was made due to serious cave-ins and lack of oxygen.
Yide is a small mine that has doubled its annual output to 60,000 tonnes after recently merging with a neighboring mine. The local safety authority said the mine managers had been warned of potential safety loopholes, both orally and in writing, over the past four weeks.
Senior executives and major shareholders of the mine are in police custody.
November 23th 2010
Colombia Recovers Six Bodies After Deadly Coal Mine Accident
Colombian rescue workers recovered six bodies after a blast at a mine killed seven men in central Colombia. The men died after an explosion triggered by methane gas ripped through a mine in the province of Cundinamarca, the state-run Colombian Institute of Geology and Mining said today.
Two other men died in a separate accident in Cundinamarca, the mining institute said.
November 21st
Chinese coal mine flood traps 28 underground
Water flooded a Chinese coal mine today, trapping 28 people carrying out safety work to expand the mine's capacity. It was the latest mining accident for China, which has the world's deadliest coal mines.
It was not clear what caused the flooding, but the official said pumps to remove the water were on the way to the mine in Neijiang city. There was an estimated 4,000 cubic metres of water in the pit, he added.
The official Xinhua news agency said Batian had stopped production and was being upgraded to increase its annual capacity from 50,000 tonnes to 60,000 tonnes. China depends on coal for 70% of its energy production.
November 19th and 24th
New Zealand mine: 'No survivors' after second blast
All 29 men missing in a New Zealand coal mine since Friday are believed to be dead after a second explosion. Police Supt Gary Knowles said there was no hope that anyone could have survived the "massive" underground blast at the Pike River mine on South Island.
BBCA mining expert says the Pike River Coal tragedy could have been avoided, if New Zealand still used a mining inspector program it threw out years ago.
Australian MiningGas levels at the Pike River coal mine are fluctuating dangerously causing the area to once again be evacuated. (11th Jan 2011)
Australian MiningNovember 8th
Mine Accident Kills Two in Chile Weeks After Rescue
Chilean officials say a mine accident has killed two workers in the same northern region where 33 miners were rescued last month after 69 days underground. Police say the two victims at Los Reyes mine were 24 and 40 years old, and Monday was their first day on the job. A third worker suffered an eye injury.
Preliminary reports suggest the accident may have been caused by a premature dynamite blast. The National Geology and Mining Service says the mine was illegal and unregistered."
Oversight of mines is spotty in Chile's vast, remote Atacama Desert.
Wall Street Journal / APThe Chilean government has now closed an illegal copper mine in which two workers lost their lives and another was seriously injured.
Earth TimesOctober 28
Illegal operation blamed for mine flooding (China)
Officials on Thursday blamed illegal operation for the flooding of a coal mine in southwest China's Guizhou Province that left 12 people dead.
Dapo Mine in Puding County, Anshun City, was operating illegally when the accident occurred. It had been ordered to suspend its operations on Aug. 20, according to a statement from the rescue headquarters.
"This is a typical accident caused by breaches of production regulations and coal mine safety procedures," said Sun Guoqiang, vice governor of Guizhou near the flooded mine.
In addition, one person was electrocuted to death in the mine on Sept. 2, about a month after the suspension order, according to the statement.
Owners of the mine did not immediately report the flooding as required. Instead, they tried to conceal the accident. The police learned about the accident only after receiving reports from mine workers.
October 17th
China mine blast kills 26 and leaves 11 trapped
A deadly explosion at a coal mine in Yuzhou in China's central Henan province killed 26 miners and left another 11 trapped underground. State media said the mine had been hit by a "sudden coal and gas outburst" which unleashed tonnes of coal dust.
BBCDeath toll from China's coal mine accident reaches 31
Thaindian NewsAugust 28th
Coal mine explosion causes the deaths of three miners in Tkibuli
Officials say a methane explosion at a coal mine has killed three and wounded seven in Tkibuli, western Georgia.
This is the second explosion at the mine this year. In March, a sudden build-up of methane gas caused a blast that killed four miners.
When President Saakashvili visited Tkibuli the morning following the August 27 explosion, he told the miners that ventilation systems had been installed in the mine, but the problem was with absence of 'discipline'. “It is apparent that no safety instructions are actually being given before employees enter the mines.
August 3rd 2020 -
19 coal workers killed in two mines in China
Gas exploded at a Chinese coal mine Tuesday, killing 10 people and trapping seven just hours after lethal gas leaked into another coal mine and killed nine, state media said.
Boston.comJuly 18th 2010 -
28 killed in China coal mine accident
At least 28 workers were killed in a massive fire inside a coal mine in China, the authorities said.
India TalkiesAt least 30 miners were killed and 13 more remained trapped in three separate coal mine accidents in China during the weekend, state media reported, highlighting the country's struggle to improve its mine safety record.
ReutersJune 22nd 2010 –
47 die in China mine explosion
An explosion in a coal mine in central China on Monday killed 47 miners while 28 others were brought out to safety in yet another major mishap in the colliery sector notorious for its accidents. The blast occurred in coal mine when a pack of gunpowder kept underground detonated.
The Asian AgeJune 18th 2010 -
30 killed in three accidents in China
At least 30 miners were killed and 13 more remained trapped in three separate coal mine accidents in China during the weekend, state media reported, highlighting the country's struggle to improve its mine safety record.
ReutersJune 16th 2010
73 miners killed in Colombia
Bodies of 73 miners, killed in one of the disastrous mining accidents in Colombia, were retrieved Friday Jun 25, nine days after a methane explosion rocked the San Fernando coal mine in Antioquia province.
The explosion occured in the mine near the town of Amaga in north-western Colombia on Jun 16. Normally 600 miners work in the mine, but the explosion occurred during shift change, fortunately sparing some lives. Initial reports had said 72 out of 79 miners, working underground at the time of the explosion, died in the powerful methane explosion in the mine.
In spite of lacking a ventilation system for dangerous gases, a basic safety feature, the mine passed a safety inspection provincial just the week before the accident.
Relatives held a resigned vigil Thursday outside a coal mine in northwestern Colombia where dozens of miners were trapped and feared dead after an explosion that killed at least 16 workers.
Huffington Post, earlier, but more detailed reportAuthorities in Antioquia are warning of the risk of disease spreading in the area around the San Fernando coal mine, where an accident killed dozens of miners, as decomposing bodies are still trapped underground, reports AFP
Rendon said that the measures were "necessary because as the days pass, there is more likely to be a presence of an epidemiological situation brought by the decomposing bodies."
18th May 2010 –
Gas blast kills 10 in north China mine
At least 10 people are confirmed dead and one is missing after a coal mine gas explosion Tuesday in north China's Shanxi Province.
China DailyMay 11th 2020 –
One worker died, 25 injured: Bangladesh
One Bangladeshi worker died, 25 injured and three other miners still missing while a roof of a tunnel of the Barapukuria coal mine caved in at Parbartipur. The accident took place when a roof fault inside the mine collapsed on 32 miners.
BDCanMay 8th 2010 -
Raspadskaya mine explosion (Russia): at least 66 dead
The Raspadskaya mine explosion was located near Mezhdurechensk in Kemerovo Oblast, Russia. It was believed to have been caused by a build up of methane. A second explosion c4 hours later collapsed the mine's ventilation shaft and trapped several rescue workers. By 18 May, 66 people were confirmed dead with at least 99 others injured and 24 unaccounted for.
The mine is the largest underground coal mine in Russia, producing 10% of the country's coking coal. It has a history of accidents and safety problems. A worker was killed after part of the mine collapsed in January 2010.
Russian rescue workers stopped searching for 24 men still missing after a mine disaster that killed at least 66 because of fears of new underground blasts.
ReutersMay 6th 2010 -
4 dead, six trapped in Chhattisgarh coal mine accident, India
A deputy general manager of Public Sector South Eastern Coal Fields Limited (SECL) and three workers were killed and 30 others were injured, a dozen of them seriously, in a blast inside a coal mine today while they were trying to plug a Carbon Monoxide leak at Anjani Hill mine at Chirmiri in Koriya district of Chhattisgarh.
Express IndiaApril 29th 2010 -
Two Dead in Kentucky Mine Collapse
A rescue team has found a second Kentucky miner dead after a roof collapse at an underground coal mine with a long history of safety problems.
Records show inspectors from the Kentucky Office of Mine Safety and Licensing have issued 31 orders to close sections of the mine or to shut down equipment because of safety violations since January 2009. Those records also show an additional 44 citations for safety violations that didn't result in closure orders.
MSHA records show the mine was cited 840 times by federal inspectors for safety violations since January 2009, and 11 times closure orders were issued.
The records show 214 of the citations were issued in the first four months of this year, and twice inspectors issued closure orders.
A Mine Safety and Health Administration report released last week regarding the deaths of two miners at Webster County Coal's Dotiki Mine in April concluded the deaths "occurred when the mine encountered an anomaly of multiple hidden intersecting slickenslides, commonly referred to as 'slips,' which were not detected by the mine operator."
Journal EnterpriseApril 5th 2010 -
Predicted explosion in West Virginia Killed 29 miners
An explosion 300m deep in Upper Big Branch Mine, owned by Massey Energy, in West Virginia killed
29 miners. In 2009, the Mine Safety and Health Administration cited the UBB mine 515 times, often for problems with its ventilation and escape-route plans. Some 48 of the citations were for violations deemed likely to lead to serious injury or illness.
This is not the first time that Massey — the fourth-largest coal company in America — has come under fire for its
safety practices. In 2006 two people died in a fire at the Aracoma mine, which Massey owns and which was found to have inadequate water supplies and poor ventilation. Massey paid $4.2m in criminal and civil fines. In 2008 Massey paid $20m in fines levied by the Environmental Protection Agency for clean-water violations.
What caused America‘s worst mining accident in 25 years? (The Economist)
Two Mines Show How Safety Practices Vary Widely (New York Times)
NEW 7th June 2011: Massey calls mine explosion a natural disaster in report
April 4th 2010 –
300 homes turn into gas chambers
Kitchen fires have literally stopped burning in Fatehpur of Chandankyari block.
Villagers have been surviving on dry gram and puffed rice for the last few days as the presence of coal-bed methane in their homes has made it impossible to strike a match indoors for fear of burning the house down. The area is about 34km from Bokaro steel city where Electrosteel Castings Limited is excavating coal from its recently acquired mines.
Fed up with the situation, hundreds of villagers have embarked on an agitation, demanding food for all 300 families of Fatehpur from the administration till the problem was addressed.
March 20th 2020 -
Rescuers in China Struggle to Free 153 Trapped Miners
Rescue workers in northern China struggled to reach 153 miners trapped a day earlier when water gushed into a warren of tunnels dug for a new underground coal field. Government officials say an additional 108 men scurried to safety as the mine began flooding Sunday afternoon. A preliminary investigation suggests that miners may have broken through to an adjacent subterranean pit where water had been accumulating.
New York TimesScores rescued from flooded Chinese mine
BBCPoor safety standards blamed for China mine flooding
BBCMarch 1st 2010 -
China flooded mine traps dozens in Inner Mongolia
Rescue workers are attempting to reach at least 31 miners trapped in a flooded coal mine in the Inner Mongolia region of China, say officials.
One person has been killed in the flooded mine, near the city of Wuhai, 1,000km (600 miles) west of Beijing.
China Daily said 77 miners had been working at depths of up to 289m (948ft), when the mine flooded in the early hours of Monday morning.
January 10th 2010 -
Latest China coal mine disaster kills 25
At least 25 miners have died in a fire at a colliery in central China and three others remain trapped, in the latest disaster to hit the world's most dangerous mining industry.
Reuters
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