From Caribbean Herald

Four arrested in connected with China’s coal mine blast that killed dozens in Chifeng city

• Death toll rose to 32 on Sunday after miners were trapped in the coal mine for four days

• Authorities have nabbed four people in connection with the blast

QITAIHE, China – China, that has over the last few years gained the infamy of housing the world’s deadliest mining industry witnessed dozens of deaths in two separate and equally tragic coal mine blasts.

On Sunday, 32 miners were confirmed dead in the coal mine explosion that occurred on Saturday in Chifeng city in the Inner Mongolia region.

Xinhua News Agency confirmed that there were 181 miners inside the underground mine and while 149 of them managed to escape, the rest perished inside.

The report pointed out that the mine was being operated by Baoma Mining Co. Ltd.

This was the second mine blast to have occurred in the country in merely seven days.

In the previous blast, that occurred in a private mine in Heilongjiang provinces’ Qitaihe City – 21 out of the 22 miners working inside died tragically after remaining trapped inside for four days.

The sole survivor of the blast however still remained trapped under the remains of the mine. The search continues for the missing person.

Reports claimed that the search party couldn’t save the miners in time due to debris from the blast and poisonous gases.

Previously, authorities stated that the blast occurred accidentally but four people have since been arrested and taken into custody.

Three of those arrested were managers and one was the coal mine owner.

Being the largest producer of coal, China continues to face several similar coal mine blasts and accidents each year – that lead to several deaths of miners.

The Deputy Director of the State Administration of Coal Mine Safety has ordered a safety maintenance to be conducted across the country in order to make sure that safety is not overlooked.

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