Efforts continue to rescue coal mining accident victim (Source: VNA)The rescue team has yet to estimate how long it’s going to take them to access a trapped worker after a recent coal mining accident in northern Quang Ninh province.
The accident took place on early August 20 following a water breakout at a Thanh Cong Coal Factory work site of the Hon Gai Coal Company, an affiliate of the Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin), killing one worker and injuring ten others. Another worker, Pham Anh Van, is still missing.
Director of the Hon Gai Coal Company Bui Khac That said the rescue workers are doing their best to reach the victim’s predicted location, which is more than 160 metres from the water breakout site.
According to the rescue steering board, the narrow mining gallery plus piles of soil, stone, mud and coal have hindered the rescue efforts.
The board has mobilised more rescue forces and specialised machines from the Ha Lam Coal Company to speed up the work. More than 400 skilled workers have also joined the team.
Four water pumps with a total capacity of 200 cubic metres per hour are being used to drain the mine. On early August 21, the water from the mining gallery, part of the victim’s expected location, was contained. Rescue workers are clearing out coal, mud, soil and stone, paving the way to reach the trapped worker.
The local coal industry, a key sector in Quang Ninh, has suffered an estimated loss of 55 million USD after the historic downpour – the worst in four decades – battered the province from July 25 to early August.
Floods triggered by the rainstorm have made mines and tunnels vulnerable, causing many coal production risks.-VNA
