A survivor is rescued from the flooded Wangjialing Coal Mine in Xiangning, China. Photograph: Yan Yan/AP
...Even as Shanxi celebrated the miners' rescue (click title to entry - thank you) today [MON], officials in Henan warned that the death toll from a mine blast there had reached 28 with another 16 still trapped underground.
It was a stark reminder of the dangers of an occupation which saw 2,631 workers die in pits last year. Even given the exclusion of deaths from mining-related diseases, many believe the true figure is higher because mine owners often fail to report fatalities - preferring to pay off relatives and witnesses rather than risk closure. China recently prosecuted journalists and dozens of officials over the three-month cover up of a mining disaster in Hebei province that killed 35 people.
The government's recent safety drive has undoubtedly saved the lives of thousands of workers; at its peak in 2002, China saw 6,995 die in mines. But campaigners warn that the campaign, which has focused on the closure of small, often illegal private mines, is not by itself enough. Wangjialing, the flooded pit, is being built by a state-owned company. And last November, 108 died in an explosion at a state-run mine in Heilongjiang province....
