Two China mine industry accidents kill 17, trap 24

A police officer stands next to the damaged building after an explosion at the Liugou Coal Mining Company in Yicheng county in Linfen in north China's Shanxi Province on Saturday. An overnight blast near a workers' dormitory killed at least 17 people Saturday at a coal mine in a city in northern China notorious for mining disasters. (AP)

By REUTERS

SHANGHAI: At least 17 people were killed and 24 trapped in two separate mining accidents in China on Saturday, the official Xinhua news agency said.

An explosion near the dormitory of a coal mine in Linfen city in northern Shanxi province killed 17 people and injured at least 20, Xinhua cited local authorities as saying.

Explosives were being hidden illegally in the area, according to the initial police investigation, and a suspect had been detained, Xinhua said.

Separately, a coal mine flooded in Jixi city in northeastern Heilongjiang province Saturday evening, trapping 24 miners, Xinhua said, without giving further details.

Thousands of people are killed in China's mines every year despite government pledges to shut or consolidate many small or unsafe operations.

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