Coal miners in China’s sleepy Qinyuan County sometimes dine at Zhang’s skewered restaurant, especially on pay day, so a gas explosion that killed at least 82 of these workers made him feel pain for their bereaved families.
The tragedy unfolded in northern Shanxi province, with preliminary findings indicating that the company operating the mine had committed “serious” violations, state media reported on Saturday.
The explosion caused China’s worst mining disaster in 17 years, with search efforts continuing to find two people still missing, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
A total of 247 workers were underground at the time of the explosion, which occurred at 19:29 (1129 GMT) on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
“This is the first time such a big accident has happened here,” Zhang, who wanted to be known only by her last name, told AFP.
Many of these men were the main source of income for their families, she said.
“Think about it. He’s at that age where he has elderly parents and young children to support. Then he works in the coal mine, goes down the shaft and never comes back,” Zhang 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 in Chinese characters illuminated by orange lights was visible in the distance.
Security officers sat by the curb, strictly guarding the road gates, allowing only authorized vehicles to enter. Ambulances and police cars rolled in.
A security guard at the entrance dismissed AFP questions about whether any progress had been made in rescue efforts, saying he knew nothing.
But the guard said he didn’t sleep at all Friday night because the job was so busy with people coming in and out.
At a gas station near the mine, workers turned AFP journalists away when they were asked about the mining disaster.
“We can’t casually comment on these things,” one man told AFP, without giving his name.
“We don’t know the details – we don’t know the exact cause or the specific situation.”
He said he hoped the death toll was “not that high”, before rushing back inside the station.
At another restaurant selling Sichuan cuisine, a worker surnamed Li told AFP he had noticed ambulances driving past his house, often protected by coal miners.
But he said he was not 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 persons would be found soon.
A total of 128 people were taken to hospital for treatment, CCTV said.
One of the hospitals that received people injured in the mine tragedy was cordoned off. AFP noticed several police cars surrounding its perimeter.
Qinyuan County is dotted with coal mines, and outside one an electronic sign reads: “Go to work happy, go home safe.”
Zhang, grilling meat skewers on a stove, said he had the same wish: for the missing miners to be found safe.
Even if the pay was good, coal miners were “basically making money with their lives at risk,” she lamented.
She expressed the hope that the authorities will do everything they can to prevent accidents like this and increase mine safety.
Zhang said he feels for the families who lost loved ones in the mine explosion.
“He’s also somebody’s son, somebody’s father, somebody’s husband,” she said.
