China completes test of underground refuge chamber in bid to reduce mining casualties
August 26th, 2011 - 7:26 pm ICT by BNO NewsBEIJING (BNO NEWS) — China has completed the first manned test of a permanent underground chamber which can shelter miners in the event of an accident, state-run media reported on Friday. It is hoped the chamber can help to save lives in the future.
Safety conditions at mines in China have significantly improved in recent years, but they remain among the world’s most dangerous with 1,083 fatalities in the first seven months of 2011 alone. There were 2,433 fatalities in 2010 and 2,631 in 2009.
The State Administration of Coal Mine Safety (SACMS) last year ordered all mines in the country to build emergency shelter systems by June 2013 which are to be equipped with machines to produce oxygen and air conditioning, protective walls and airtight doors to protect workers against toxic gases and other hazardous factors.
This week, around 100 people - including managers, engineers, miners, medical staff, and the chamber’s developers - took part in a 48-hour test at a mine owned by the China National Coal Group in the city of Shuozhou in northern China’s Shanxi Province.
The test results showed the 168-square meter (1,808 square feet) chamber was well suited to host the 100 people, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. SACMS said the experiment showed the chamber is in line with national coal mine emergency rescue requirements.
One of the worst mining accidents in China in recent years happened in November 2009 when 104 workers were killed after several explosions at a coal mine in Heilongjiang province. But accidents have happened as recently as Thursday when 10 people were killed as a result of two incidents at coal mines in eastern China.
- 53 rescuers pulled out of southwest China mine, 5 workers trapped - Jul 29, 2012
- Elevator crashes at mine in eastern China, killing 13 - Mar 17, 2012
- Shaft collapses at coal mine in southwest China, killing 5 - Sep 25, 2011
- China: 11 workers confirmed dead in Changzhi mine accident - Apr 17, 2012
- Death toll rises to 29 after blast at coal mine in central China - Oct 30, 2011
- Gas explosion at southwest China mine kills at least 7 - Oct 29, 2010
- Gas leak kills 8 in SW China coal mine - Mar 28, 2011
- Death toll rises to 37 after last miners found dead in central China mine - Oct 19, 2010
- Seven killed in China mine collapse - Feb 20, 2012
- 26 trapped in China coal mine - Aug 23, 2011
- China mine blast kills 21 - Oct 17, 2010
- China develops coal mine early-warning system - Mar 29, 2012
- Seven trapped Chinese miners found alive - Nov 19, 2011
- Sound raises hope trapped Chinese miners still alive - Aug 29, 2011
- China shuts over 1,000 illegal coal mines - Aug 26, 2011
Tags: bno, coal mine, coal mines, eastern china, emergency rescue, emergency shelter, manned test, medical staff, miners, national coal, northern china, protective walls, safety conditions, seven months, shanxi province, square meter, state administration, toxic gases, underground chamber, xinhua news agency