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Provincial governor quits after 254 die in China mudslide
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 14 - 09 - 2008


The governor of China's Shanxi province stepped
down Sunday as the death toll rose to 254 after a mudslide buried a
market and several buildings in the province's north, DPA reported.
Governor Meng Xuenong resigned in the face of criticism for the
lack of official oversight on an illegally operating iron mine that
has been held responsible for the mudslide.
Heavy rain caused a dam at a waste reservoir downstream from the
mine to burst Monday.
About 268,000 cubic metres of mud covered an area of 30 hectares,
destroying a market, an office building and several houses.
Meng, 59, stepped down as mayor of Beijing in 2003 after he
attempted to cover up the outbreak of the deadly disease SARS.
China's government set up an accident investigation team and
promised harsh punishment for those responsible for the burst dam at
the Tashan mine near the town Linfen.
Police detained 13 people deemed accountable, among them the mine
management.
Locals accused the mine operators of being aware of the dangers of
the dam, but said no one dared to blow the whistle "because the boss
of the mine was so rich that he could settle everything with money,"
one resident was quoted as saying.
"Every time it is the same: when a large number of officials were
sacked because of an accident, the new ones continue to make the same
mistakes," Zhang Jiping added.
The area around Tashan has several iron ore mines that employ many
migrant workers from Shanxi and other provinces, making it difficult
for local officials to identify the victims of the mudslide, reports
said.
Six days after the mudslide, rescue efforts by thousands of
volunteers continued the search for more bodies as hopes of finding
survivors fade.
Officials said the mud would be cleared off the ground by Sunday,
but rescuers encountered difficulties clearing the sludge from two
ravines.


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