Qinyuan, a quiet Chinese county hit by deadly coal mine disaster

CHANGZHI, Shanxi – Coal miners in the sleepy Chinese county of Qinyuan sometimes dine at Ms Zhang’s skewer eatery, especially on payday, so a gas explosion that killed at least 82 of these workers left her feeling sorrow for their bereaved families.

Earlier reports had said at least 90 were killed.

The tragedy unfolded in northern Shanxi province, with preliminary findings showing that the company operating the mine had committed “serious” violations, the state media reported on May 23.

The blast caused China’s worst mining disaster in more than 16 years, with search efforts ongoing to find two people still missing, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

A total of 247 workers were underground at the time of the blast, which occurred at 7.29pm on May 22 at the Liushenyu coal mine, according to state news agency Xinhua.

“This is the first time such a big accident has happened here,” Ms Zhang, who wanted to be known only by her surname, told AFP.

Many of these men were their families’ main breadwinner, she said.

“Think about it. He’s at that age where he has both elderly parents and young children to support. Then he works in the coal mine, goes down the shaft and never comes back up,” she added. “How are they supposed to go on living?”

‘Someone’s father’

Police blocked AFP reporters from entering a road leading to the mine but a building bearing its name with the Chinese characters lit up by orange lights was visible in the distance.

Security officers sat by the kerb, strictly guarding the gantry of the roads, allowing only authorised vehicles in. Ambulances and police cars entered.

A security guard at the entrance brushed off AFP’s questions on whether any progress in rescue efforts had been made, saying he did not know anything.

But the guard said he had not slept at all on the night of May 22 because work was too busy with people coming in and out.

At a petrol station near the mine, workers shooed AFP journalists away when they were asked about the mining disaster.

“We can’t just casually comment on these things,” one man said, without giving his name.

“We’re not aware of the details – we don’t know the exact cause or the specific situation.”

He said he hoped the number of deaths “isn’t that high”, before he hurried back inside the station.

At another restaurant selling Sichuan cuisine, a worker with the surname Li said he had noticed ambulances whizzing by his place, frequently patronised by coal mine workers.

But he said he had not been too emotionally affected, despite initially being surprised by the death toll.

“Working in a coal mine, this kind of accident is inevitable,” he said, adding that he hoped the missing people would be found soon.

A total of 128 people were taken to hospital for treatment, CCTV said.

One of the hospitals that took in people injured in the mine tragedy was cordoned off with tape. AFP spotted multiple police cars surrounding its perimeter.

Qinyuan county is peppered with coal mines, and outside one, an electronic sign reads: “Go to work happy, go home safely.”

As she grilled meat skewers on a stove, Ms Zhang said she had that same wish: for the missing miners to be found safe and sound.

Even if the pay was good, coal miners were “basically earning money with their lives at risk”, she lamented.

She expressed hope that the authorities would do all they could to prevent accidents like this and increase mine safety.

Ms Zhang said she feels for the families who lost their loved ones in the mine explosion.

“He is also someone’s son, someone’s father, someone’s husband,” she said. AFP