Although the coalmine has been cordoned off, Wan Yufang, 51, still waits in the icy wind, eyes filled with tears, praying silently. Her 30-year-old son is still trapped underground in the Chenjiashan Coalmine, Tongchuan City in Shaanxi, scene of China’s latest mining tragedy.

　　TO THE RESCUE: Members of a rescue team emerge from the tunnels of the Chenjiashan Coalmine

　　At about 7:10 on the morning of November 28, the coalmine reported a gas explosion an hour before miners were due to complete their shift. There were 293 miners working underground at the time, some 8 km away from the tunnel entrance. By 9:00 that morning, over 80 miners had been rescued and the lives of another 200 hung in the balance.

　　Wan’s son, Yao Xiaoshe, is one of the trapped workers. Only a day before the accident, Yao ran into her mother and was pleased to tell her that he would be returning home to see her just after the night shift. But the following day, Wan heard the bad news.

　　By early evening, 127 miners had been pulled out alive, yet 166 remained trapped underground. Those who escaped the gas explosion were mainly workers working near the entrance, suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning and minor injuries.

　　This was the worst mine disaster since September 2000, when a gas explosion in southwest Guizhou killed 162 miners.

　　The State Council work group, which rushed to the mine on the night of November 29, urged rescuers on, exhorting them to ensure the safety of rescuers, care for the relatives of trapped miners and help the injured. A State Council investigation team was set up to study the cause of the explosion, according to You Quan, head of the group, who also promised to provide information about the rescue operation.

　　Six rescue teams reached the underground working sites where the explosion happened. The teams split up and headed for No.415 and No.416 work sites, where they have been trying to restore ventilation for further rescue operations. There were still flaming areas underground, exposing the mine to further damage and threatening the ongoing rescue work. Rescuers were unable to reach the site where the explosion occurred, as the concentration of carbon monoxide in the air exceeded safety levels. According to Wang Xianzheng, Director of the State Administration of Work Safety, this was a “complicated disaster” and “difficult to handle.”

　　On the morning of December 1, a spokesman for the rescue operation declared that there were no survivors from the group of 166 trapped miners. Twenty-one corpses were retrieved at 3:00 that morning.

　　This is the second fatal colliery gas explosion resulting in a heavy death toll at a state-owned coalmine in the past 40 days. Previously, a gas explosion took place at the Daping Coalmine in Henan on October 20, killing 148 and injuring 32.

　　According to statistics from the State Administration of Work Safety, from January to September, 4,153 workers died in 2,796 accidents in coalmines across the country.

　　Disregard for Safety

　　ANXIOUS WAIT: Family members of trapped workers wait anxiously outside the coalmine to hear news of their loved ones

　　Chenjiashan Coalmine is under the jurisdiction of the Tongchuan Mining Administration. It has more than 3,400 employees and the designed production capability is 1.5 million tons a year. After technological transformation in 2003, it could produce 2.3 million tons of coal a year.

　　The mine is geologically diverse with coal, oil and gas contained together, a combustible mix. In 1993, the mine was considered as a colliery. With high gas density, the coal in it was easy to burn, experts said. Gas explosions in tunnels can occur when a great deal of harmful, suffocating gas breaks suddenly and reaches an air density of more than 12 percent, creating conditions for an explosion, according to experts.

　　The mine used to suffer a fire every three to six months, with the shortest break between fires being 24 days. A gas explosion on April 6, 2001 in the coalmine claimed 38 lives.

　　It was reported in local media that on November 23, a fire swept through the underground area of the mine, taking a week to control. During this time, production was never stopped. Though many workers were not willing to go on working underground while these dangers existed, they were aware that refusal to work would result in their dismissal.

　　The planned production goal of the coalmine is 1.8 million tons this year, which was achieved in October. However, the Tongchuan Mining Administration assigned a new task of 2.2 million tons for the year and it is alleged that if the goal could be achieved, the mine’s top officials were set to receive bonuses of 400,000 yuan ($48,309). This meant a massive push in the last two months of the year, to produce 200,000 tons each month. The average monthly production volume in the past 10 months of the year was however only 180,000 tons.

　　More Supervision

　　GRUESOME TASK: The first 21 bodies of victims are retrieved after the explosion in Chenjiashan Coalmine

　　After the accident, the Shaanxi Provincial Government issued an urgent notice on November 29, requiring all the province’s mines with high gas density to halt operation for safety examination.

　　In Beijing, the State Administration of Coal Mine Safety held a meeting on November 30 to promote implementation of the Safety Rules of Coalmines. Officials from several provincial departments of coalmine administration and safety supervision attended the meeting.

　　“There are only five to six officials in one province, and in some provinces, only one or two, who are engaged in supervision over coalmine safety, and this is not their sole duty. How can they manage to supervise all the coalmines?” said Wang Chen, an official with the Qinghai Economic and Trade Commission. “It is beyond our ability to supervise the safety of coalmines,” he admitted.

　　China’s 9 percent economic growth rate, accompanied by a need for ever larger amounts of electricity, has caused the demand for coal to soar in recent years.

　　“After the accidents, it is necessary to strengthen awareness of work safety, improve the work safety mechanism and ascertain legal and administrative responsibilities of related officials,” said Zhao Jie, researcher from the Central Party School of the Communist Party of China. In Zhao’s opinion, it is imperative to reflect upon a development pattern that is extensive and unsustainable with high consumption.

　　Another coalmine blast killed at least 13 miners early this year in Guizhou, the State Administration of Work Safety said on its website. Xinhua News Agency reported on December 1 that four officials, including the assistant director of the mine, have been arrested for not taking action to prevent a mine blast in Henan in October that killed 148.

　　By WANG JUN