Read the story hereChina Mine Flooding Update: 115 Miners Rescued Alive
5 April, 2010
World News (China): In a surprising development that is being described by many as a miracle, 115 miners were rescued alive on Monday from a coal mine in northern China that had been flooded by underground water over a week ago, reports China's State TV.
Last heard, rescuers were still working on reaching the 38 still trapped miners.
The television coverage showed the rescued miners being taken out in stretchers amid loud cheering by people around. The rescued workers are said to be in stable condition.
The Wangjialing mine flooded on March 28 when the 261 miners were working there. 108 workers could be reached immediately after flooding.
The present rescue had begun around midnight before Monday morning, two days after tapping sound was heard from within the mine.
50 rescue groups, comprising of 200 people in all were working tirelessly draining water, monitoring gas and pulling out miners, according to Wang Jun, governor of Shanxi province where the mine is located.
The latest mine accident is one in a series of mine accidents that are common in China. In 2009, 2,631 people died in such accidents.
On Monday, China began a two-month campaign to inspect safety regulations in mines and other industries that have had serious accidents
Due to seasonal flooding, hundreds of Chinese coal miners were trapped in a coal mine, for about a week. Officials took them for dead, but a few days back people reported hearing tapping sounds comming from the mine, as the miners attempted to tunnel into an adjacent shaft. Rescue workers were dispatched to drain the water from the mine, and pump air down to the survivors below, and as of today, over 100 miners have been rescued from the mine, with hopes to find more.
According to the accounts I'd heard, during the flood they'd been clinging to the walls while awake, and lashing themselves to support beams at night, to keep them from being swept away into the depths. After the torrent slowed, they were trapped waist-deep in toxic, coal-blackened water for almost a week, and when they finally escaped they were starved and severely dehydrated.
Apparently this sort of thing isn't uncommon either... Chinese mines are reputed to be among the most dangerous in the industrialized world. In the wake of this, the State is commencing a governmental saftey inspection of all mines, so this sort of thing can be avoided in the future.
Call me callous, but hearing this story on NPR totally made me think of all the times I've accidentally pierced the aquifer in DF. I wonder if we'll ever see an in-game model for seasonal flooding, or asphyxiation from being trapped in sealed chambers?