Three young girls in Ji'an, Jiangxi, died in abandoned mine pits and should be backfilled many years ago
It was an abandoned mine pit 50 meters deep. In the early morning of May 5, the bodies of three girls in their twenties were salvaged ashore, wearing "swimsuits" changed from old clothes. This is Yanxi Town, Xiajiang County, Jiangxi Province. Three mines have been opened, and this 200-meter-wide mine pit was left behind after successive closures.
It was an abandoned mine pit 50 meters deep.
In the early morning of May 5, the bodies of three girls in their twenties were salvaged ashore, wearing "swimsuits" changed from old clothes.
Zhou Guoqing (pseudonym) is the father of one of the girls. He felt that his daughter was obedient and timid. The other two little girls did not dare to go to the waste pit two kilometers away.
This is Yanxi Town, Xiajiang County, Jiangxi Province. Three mines have been opened, and this 200-meter-wide mine pit was left behind after successive closures.
Villagers said that the mine pit was abandoned for seven or eight years, but it has not been landfilled. There are many children in the village, and there are naturally hidden security risks.
The village party secretary of the village confessed that the mine owner had left 400,000 yuan to dispose of the waste pit, but the villagers intended to use it for irrigation, which dispelled the idea of backfilling. People often come here to fish and graze cattle, and the "deep water danger" sign in the weeds has slowly lost its warning effect.
On the morning of May 8, a reporter from the Beijing News learned from the Yanxi Town Police Station in Xiajiang County that three children had been preliminarily excluded from the cause of death.
A child's family said that they hope to find out the reason as soon as possible. "If there is no explanation, the pit will remain as it is, and there may be tragedy."
Before the incident, they had a meeting to "go swimming"
After making dinner, Zhou Guoqing's daughter has not returned home.
He recalled to the Beijing News reporter that his daughter went out at around 2:30 in the afternoon of May 4th and played with two children in the same village.
"My child is 10 years old and is in the fifth grade of elementary school. The other two children are 10 years old and 12 years old." Zhou Guoqing said that they are all obedient children, and their families think they are playing in the village. By six o'clock in the evening, the three talents began to go from house to house.
A family from the east of the village provided clues. The child said that at three or four in the afternoon, the three girls had called her to go swimming, but she did not go.
Afterwards, three families and more than 20 relatives cast the same net. The pond in the village is shallow and can be seen to the end at a glance. Tian Tou and the pond found a circle, and no children were seen.
At nine o'clock in the evening, Zhou Guoqing heard a message that made him "chuck".
This is a family near the village. The villager recalled that at around 4 pm that day, he went to the abandoned mine pit next door to Yankeng Village to graze cattle. He heard the sound of the mine pit several times in the middle, which was the sound of children playing and playing.
He said that the mine had accumulated water all the year round. People in the village and nearby villages would go fishing. When there were many people, it was also lively, so he didn't pay special attention to it.
Zhou Guoqing knew that it was a large puddle 200 meters wide. There are minerals in the local area, and there are three iron ore mines in the towns where he is located. Nowadays, they have ceased production due to environmental protection and management problems. Mining left a pit here, which has been abandoned for seven or eight years.
Another father who was looking for children couldn't believe it. He felt that his daughter was timid and would not go to the mine pit two kilometers away from home. He never mentioned it to his family on the day of the accident. "We rarely go to the village next door. We have told our children not to go to the river or the pond to play with water."
"The child wore a 'homemade swimsuit' when he was salvaged"
Zhou Guoqing ran to the pit while shouting the child's name and lighting up the search.
"It's already dark, the pit is too big, and it's very difficult to find it." Zhou Guoqing said that they didn't find the children's clothing near the pit until one or two in the morning on May 5. "When I saw the piles of clothes for the three children, I felt like I should be flooded."
As a result, the children's relatives contacted search and rescue personnel overnight, and at noon the next day, all three children's bodies were salvaged ashore.
The father of one of the children told reporters that the child was wearing a thin "swimsuit" when he was salvaged, and other clothes were placed on the shore.
Zhou Guoqing said that none of the three children could swim and did not know when the "swimsuit" was made.
The so-called "swimsuit" is actually changed from old clothes. The trouser legs are cut very short. The jacket is cut off the sleeves and the clothes below the navel to make it look like a swimsuit.
According to the monitoring data provided by the blue sky rescue team at the scene of rescue, the shallow water of the pit is also 4 meters deep. The water where the child was salvaged is about 17 meters deep, and the deepest part of the whole pit is 50 meters.
A child's family told the Beijing News reporter that there was a "dangerous depth" sign near the waste pit, but it was installed behind the pumping equipment room near the pit and was covered by weeds, which was very unremarkable.
Zhou Guoqing said that after the three children were salvaged from the mine, they were carried away by unidentified persons. The local police station did not give a clear statement about the cause of the child ’s death.
Unfilled abandoned mine pit
This deep pit has not attracted the attention of nearby villagers.
A villager who worked in an iron mine told reporters that this mine is low-lying and the surrounding water will flow in. When the iron mine was still in operation, two pumps were needed to drain it day and night.
Many villagers in Xiahouchuan Village and Yankeng Village said that they all wanted the village or the village to fill the pit, but no one had been responsible for it. So far, only one side of the abandoned mine pit is guarded, and the rest is not protected.
"If you don't fill it, it will happen sooner or later." A village name said that there are many children in the nearby villages, and there are hidden safety hazards in the mine.
In this regard, the village party secretary told reporters that when the mining company stopped production, it had given the village a sum of money, about 400,000 yuan, to be used to backfill, manage the pit and compensate the villagers. There is no backfilling for water storage irrigation. There are indeed certain safety hazards, and more safety warning signs will be set up in the future. "
Regarding the fact that the children's family members did not see the children, this afternoon, the staff of the Xiajiang County Civil Affairs Bureau responded to the Beijing News reporter that the child's remains are reflected in the funeral home, and the family can go to visit.
On the morning of May 8, a reporter from the Beijing News learned from the Yanxi Town Police Station in Xiajiang County that three children had been preliminarily excluded from the cause of death.
A child's family said that they hope to find out the reasons early and divide their responsibilities. "If there is no statement, the pit will still remain that way, and there may be tragedy."
Beijing News reporter Liu Mingyang