Worst Coal Mine Disasters

The Benxihu colliery disaster in China is believed to be the worst coal mining disaster ever. An explosion ripped through the Honkeiko coal mine near Benxi in the Liaoning province of China, leaving 1549 dead. The fatal explosion was caused by a mixture of gas and coal dust. Carbon monoxide poisoning due to the closure of the ventilation system was reported to have caused most of the deaths.

The Courrieres mine disaster in France is the second deadliest coal mining disaster in history. A total of 1,099 miners were confirmed to be dead after the incident in 1906.

A massive explosion, sparked by an underground fire in one of the pits of the Courrieres Colliery, caused the catastrophe. Workers inside the mine's deep tunnels, as well as people on the surface, were killed in the disaster.

Mitsubishi Hojyo coal mine disaster, the deadliest mining accident in Japan, left 687 deaths. A gas explosion caused the incident at the Mitsubishi Hojyo coal mine in the Kyushu Island of Japan.

Laobaidong coal mine disaster, the second deadliest in China, killed 684 people.

The disaster occurred in the Laobaidong coal mine near Datong in the Shanxi province of China. A gas explosion was reported to have caused the incident. Chinese government banned the media from broadcasting the catastrophe for more than three decades until it was revealed in 1992.

The Mitsui Miike coal mine explosion, the second deadliest in Japan, left 484 people dead and 833 others injured. Most of the survivors suffered severe brain damage. The deaths were related to carbon monoxide poisoning. The coal mine ceased its operations in 1997.

Monongah Coal Mine Disaster is the worst mining catastrophe in the US. A firedamp and a coal dust explosion caused the disaster in the mine facility, run by Fairmont Coal Company. The number of fatalities in the disaster is recorded as 362. Most of the victims are Italian immigrants. Rescue workers could hardly work for 15 minutes due to the lack of breathing equipment. Few of them died of suffocation.

Coalbrook mine disaster, which left 435 deaths, is the worst ever disaster in South Africa's mining history. The disaster took place at the Coalbrook North Mine of the Clydesdale Colliery near Sasolburg. A collapse of underground area caused the disaster. Nearly 1,000 miners were on duty underground at the time of collapse. Half of them could survive by escaping via an incline shaft. Few rescue workers also died after having been trapped in mine.