Nine dead, 10 injured after tremor hits Jilin mine

Nine people have died and 10 were injured after a tremor hit a mine in Changchun, Jilin province, which has been fined twice in recent years for safety irregularities.

Authorities have suspended the operations of all mines in Changchun over safety concerns after the tremor hit around 8 pm on Sunday. None of the injuries are life-threatening.

More than 300 miners were trapped underground when the tremor jolted the Longjiapu coal mine managed by Jilin Liaoyuan Mining Co in Jiutai city.

Li Yinghui, chief engineer of the mining company, said the tremor resulted in the collapse of a transportation tunnel 900 meters underground.

Li said luckily the collapse didn't completely block the tunnel but left a space about 1 meter high, which created favorable conditions for the rescue work that lasted until 4 am Monday.

With reserves of 180 million metric tons of coal, the mine began operations in July 2009. It now boasts annual output capacity of 3 million tons, according to the company website.

Sun Haiwen, deputy head of Changchun emergency management authority, said all mines in the city have been asked to suspend their operations. They have also been ordered to conduct thorough safety checks.

"They can only resume production after experts check their mines and accept that they have done proper rectification work if risks are found," Sun said.

Sun added that in addition to checks of machinery and structures at the mines, measures to protect the personal safety of miners also need to be in place. However, he added that the severity of Sunday's tremor was well beyond "people's capability to control" it.

He said mine tremors caused by mining activities are similar to earthquakes in that both are hard to predict.

Wang Jianxia, a resident living near the coal mine, said she had experienced tremors quite frequently of late.

The 40-year-old said these tremors resulted in cracks in house walls and had ruptured some roads.