Death Toll Rises to 138 in Northeast China Coal Mine Blast

Death toll rises to 138 in northeast China coal mine blast

QITAIHE, Heilongjiang, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) — Rescuers found four more remains of miners killed in Sunday’s blast at Dongfeng Coal Mine run by the Qitaihe branch of the Longmei Mining (Group) Co., Ltd. in Heilongjiang Province.

That brings the death toll of the coal mine explosion to 138, sources from the National Bureau of Production Safety Supervision and Administration said Tuesday morning.

Altogether 221 miners were working underground when the blast went off at 9:40 p.m. Sunday at the coal mine. Only 72 miners escaped the explosion site.

The bureau has called for all-out efforts to search for the remaining 11 miners missing after the explosion.