Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/ XINJIANG: A gold mine collapse in China’s north-western province of Xinjiang has left 18 people trapped underground.
A total of 40 workers were present in the mine when it caved. Twenty-two miners were immediately brought to safety with rescue efforts underway to retrieve the others, state media reported.
China’s dangerous gold and coal mines
China, globally the biggest producer of coal and gold, has one of the largest mining industries in the world.
However, Chinese mines are considered extremely dangerous with frequent occurrences of miner casualties amid poor safety precautions and a lack of supervision. Although, mine safety in the country has improved in recent decades, but accidents still frequently occur, particularly at the most rudimentary sites.
In September last year, 19 miners died after they were trapped underground amid a coal mine collapse in the province of Qinghai.
