A gas explosion killed two, left two missing and
injured 61 in a tunnel in Wenchuan County in Sichuan
Province on Tuesday, according to a local newspaper report.
The accident occurred at 4:20 PM in an area that is
to be submerged in the Zipingpu water conservation project.
About 28 seriously injured workers have been
transferred to larger hospitals in Chengdu, the provincial capital,
for better care. The remaining workers, who sustained lesser
injures, were treated at local hospitals in Dujiangyan.
The first ten patients to arrive at Sichuan Provincial People's
Hospital and were in a critical condition, said Hu Weijian,
director of the first aid center there.
Li Huaxu helped push his father to Sichuan
Provincial People's Hospital. The 17-year-old and his father have
worked in the 40-meter tunnel for seven months. He was at home,
only 50 meters from the tunnel entrance, at the time of the
explosion.
"I heard a loud explosion and saw smoke and dust
coming from the tunnel. My father was inside, so I rushed into it
for him and helped him and other injured out," he said.
"I've seen gas burning on the tunnel ceiling three times, but I did
not report it to the supervisors since I believed it was normal,"
Li said.
Zipingpu water conservancy project is one of the
top ten projects in China's West Development campaign. Construction
began on the project three years ago and is to be completed in
2006.
(Xinhua News Agency December 8, 2004)
