China Mine Blast Traps and Kills 33

A China mine blast on Monday morning in the southwest Chongqing region left 33 trapped miners dead.

There were 35 coal miners trapped underground after Monday’s gas explosion, but only two were able to escape, CBS News reported. The Beijing media reported Wednesday that the other 33 miners were found dead, and work safety officials want those responsible to be punished.

The explosions are believed to have been caused by a flame or electrical spark. Gas explosions inside mines are usually caused “when a flame or electrical spark ignites gas leaking from the coal seam,” CBS News noted.

According to BBC News, about 200 rescuers had been working since Monday to try to get to the miners who remained trapped, but once they reached them, it was too late.

All the bodies have been discovered and pulled up from the Jinshangou mine and are now being identified, The People’s Daily Newspaper noted, according to the BBC.

China’s mining industry has been considered one of the world’s deadliest, CBS said. China is also the world’s largest producer and consumer of coal.

China has a long list of industrial accidents that have been caused by factory explosions and mine collapses, according to BBC. In 2015, there were three noticeable accidents: the mine collapse in Pingyi County, the Shenzhen mudslide, and the Tianjin explosions that killed 173 people, BBC noted.

According to CNN, there were nearly 600 deaths last year from mining accidents.

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