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24 Dead in China Mine Blast

Owners disguised site as boar farm to dupe officials

By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 18, 2008 7:12 PM CST

(Newser) – Twenty-four people died and five were wounded in a blast at an illegal iron mine in China yesterday, Xinhua reports. Mine owners, who fled the scene, had masked the site as a boar farm to dupe authorities. "The owner has violated the law by illegally exploring the state-owned resources," an official said. Rescue crews unearthed miners today, including trapped survivors, but found no cause for the blast.

State media warned today that mining is now riskier after a recent spate of storms stalled work; built-up gases and shaky power lines may spark more accidents, AFP reports. China's coal mining industry is the world's deadliest, plagued by illegal digging and driven by high-priced resources, MSNBC reports.

In this photo released by China's Xinhua news agency, workers take measures to guarantee the ventilation of the shaft after a blast happened at the Weijialing Coal Mine in Fenxi County, Linfen City, north China's Shanxi Province, Monday, Jan. 21, 2008. (AP Photo/Xinhua, Jiang Hongjing)
In this photo released by China's Xinhua news agency, workers take measures to guarantee the ventilation of the shaft after a blast happened at the Weijialing Coal Mine in Fenxi County, Linfen City, north...   (Associated Press)
Coal miners relax wearing masks after a shift inside a coal mine near Datong, in China's Shanxi province, March 8, 2001. (AP Photo/str)
Coal miners relax wearing masks after a shift inside a coal mine near Datong, in China's Shanxi province, March 8, 2001. (AP Photo/str)   (Associated Press)
Rescue workers looks on during a break from efforts to find miners after a gas explosion Wednesday at a mine in Hongtong county, northern China's Shanxi province, Friday, Dec. 7, 2007. (AP Photo/EyePress)
Rescue workers looks on during a break from efforts to find miners after a gas explosion Wednesday at a mine in Hongtong county, northern China's Shanxi province, Friday, Dec. 7, 2007. (AP Photo/EyePress)   (Associated Press)
Backdrop by cooling towers of a power plant and chemical factory, miners shovel coal at mine in Xiahuayuan county in north China's Hebei province, Friday, Nov. 30, 2007. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Backdrop by cooling towers of a power plant and chemical factory, miners shovel coal at mine in Xiahuayuan county in north China's Hebei province, Friday, Nov. 30, 2007. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)   (Associated Press)
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