Single coal mine blast kills more than Chernobyl disaster

[wtmusic]

BEIJING, China (CNN) -- The death toll from a coal mine blast in northern China climbed Sunday to 74, the state-run media Xinhua News Agency said.

Some 114 miners were hospitalized as a result of the incident, including six miners in critical condition, said Xinhua.

The number of deaths rose as rescue workers continued to pull victims from the shaft of the mine in Shanxi province, where dozens of miners remained trapped.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/02/21/china.mine/index.html

Loss of Life from the Chernobyl Nuclear Accident:
By mid-2005, fewer than 60 deaths could be linked directly to Chernobyl—mostly workers who were exposed to massive radiation during the accident or children who developed thyroid cancer.

http://environment.about.com/od/chernobyl/p/chernobyl.htm

[madokie]

1. I doubt seriously that you can say that with any certainty

Last I read there is still people dieing from complications from that disaster and will be for quite some time.

[wtmusic]

3. 4000+ will die from thyroid cancer

according to conservative estimates - others run higher.

OTOH, deaths from airborne contaminants from burning coal are about 100 times that - every year.

Trying to put things in perspective.

[NobleCynic]

4. Now that you've stepped back you're correct

Coal kills more people every year than nuclear, even accounting for Chernobyl.

That said, why such a deceptive op? It nukes, if you'll pardon the pun, any credibility.

[TheWraith]

5. Actually, that number was for all cancers, not just thyroid. nt

[Massacure]

6. 3000 people die in Chinese coal mines every year.

[Name removed]

13. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[kestrel91316]

2. OMG, if it ain't NNadir Jr.

[OKIsItJustMe]

7. Effects of coal blast localized

[eppur_se_muova]

8. Dead miners? *yawn* When has society ever cared?

That's just the price "we" have to pay for all that wonderful, glorious, sexy coal, the once and future source of America's energy.

:sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm:

(from a grandson, nephew, cousin, etc., etc. of coal miners)

[OKIsItJustMe]

9. Actually, I think we've improved on that front

We used to routinely send boys into the mines.
http://www.explorepahistory.com/displayimage.php?imgId=4450

Literally thousands of miners were killed ecery year.
http://www.msha.gov/MSHAINFO/FactSheets/MSHAFCT2.HTM

Now, we've progressed to the point that the Sago deaths outraged many Americans.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sago_Mine_disaster

[madokie]

10. I have a question for you if I may

isn't there many deaths due to nuclear energy that is denied by the nuclear energy industry? I know there is a lot of pollution from coal power plants and deaths attributed to that and it gets reported on here constantly but isn't it also true that death rates are higher downwind from nuclear power plants but they are totally glassed over by the nuke boys. All kinds of bullshit thrown out there as to why that can't be true. Even though we all can see the same data and we don't see it the same way.

[OKIsItJustMe]

11. There are studies that suggest that nuclear plants cause more deaths than generally reported

For example, nuclear advocates will often cite "Three Mile Island" as an example of just how safe nuclear power is. (After all, nobody died. Right?)

http://www.ratical.org/radiation/KillingOurOwn/KOO14.html

[madokie]

12. Yep thats what they say all right

with us that suspect different be damned

[wtmusic]

14. Now there's a source.

"rat haus reality, ratical branch is the electronic manifestation of rat haus reality press, dedicated to promulgating and promoting life-nurturing activities and awarenesses regarding this home we all share and are all responsible for, not simply for the seventh generation of humankind yet unborn, but for all life germinated and nourished by Gaia."

Me, I'd put a little more credence in what the NRC had to say:

"Health Effects

Detailed studies of the radiological consequences of the accident have been conducted by the NRC, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (now Health and Human Services), the Department of Energy, and the State of Pennsylvania. Several independent studies have also been conducted. Estimates are that the average dose to about 2 million people in the area was only about 1 millirem. To put this into context, exposure from a full set of chest x-rays is about 6 millirem. Compared to the natural radioactive background dose of about 100-125 millirem per year for the area, the collective dose to the community from the accident was very small. The maximum dose to a person at the site boundary would have been less than 100 millirem.

In the months following the accident, although questions were raised about possible adverse effects from radiation on human, animal, and plant life in the TMI area, none could be directly correlated to the accident. Thousands of environmental samples of air, water, milk, vegetation, soil, and foodstuffs were collected by various groups monitoring the area. Very low levels of radionuclides could be attributed to releases from the accident. However, comprehensive investigations and assessments by several well-respected organizations have concluded that in spite of serious damage to the reactor, most of the radiation was contained and that the actual release had negligible effects on the physical health of individuals or the environment."

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/3mile-isle.html

[madokie]

15. If the NRC says it I have my doubts as to the honesty

Have anything besides something promoted by the nuclear industry?

[TheWraith]

16. The NRC isn't the nuclear industry, it's the federal government. nt

[madokie]

17. I'm well aware of that

I'm also well aware of who they are dealing with too, and on that I base my assumption.

[OKIsItJustMe]

18. Just to be clear

The source is the book:

KILLING OUR OWN

The Disaster of America's Experience
with Atomic Radiation

---

Harvey Wasserman & Norman Solomon
with Robert Alvarez & Eleanor Walters

[Barrett808]

19. Well sure, if you neglect the million "rectifiers" who were dropping like flies in the 1990s

And from your second link:

The Belarus National Academy of Sciences estimates 270,000 people in the region around the accident site will develop cancer as a result of Chernobyl radiation and that 93,000 of those cases are likely to be fatal.

Another report by the Center for Independent Environmental Assessment of the Russian Academy of Sciences found a dramatic increase in mortality since 1990—60,000 deaths in Russia and an estimated 140,000 deaths in Ukraine and Belarus—probably due to Chernobyl radiation.

Yay nuclear!