Dozens feared trapped in Jharkhand coal mine collapse

At least eight workers were killed and scores more feared trapped on Friday after a massive mound of earth caved in at a coal mine in eastern India.

The collapse buried at least 23 miners and dozens of vehicles under the debris as hundreds of emergency workers battled overnight to rescue the men at the Lalmatia open cast mine in Jharkhand state’s Godda district.

“So far eight dead bodies have been recovered and 15 more remain unaccounted for,” RK Mallick, Jharkhand police spokesman, told AFP.

Some of the workers had escaped the disaster site following the collapse, the officer said, with  unconfirmed media reports putting the number of trapped at 50.

Local police and emergency staff were using earth movers and sniffer dogs to locate the trapped workers under tons of earth.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his grief on Twitter, promising to help the state government in its rescue operations.
“Saddened by the loss of lives at a mine in Jharkhand. My prayers are with those trapped inside,” he said.

The National Disaster Management Authority dispatched more than 200 rescue workers to the site.

The mine is operated by the government-owned Eastern Coalfields Limited. Its top official, Niladri Roy, told AFP that more than 250 metres (820 feet) of the mine collapsed as workers headed towards the exit around 7:30 pm Thursday.


There was no immediate explanation for the collapse.

In a separate incident on Thursday, four miners were injured at a government-run coal mine in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad district.

A mine official said the workers were hit after the roof of the Putki Balihari coal mine partially collapsed. Two of the workers were critically injured.

Jharkhand is one of the richest mineral zones in India, accounting for around 29 percent of the country’s coal deposits. However it is also one of India’s poorest areas and the epicentre of a Maoist insurgency.

India has maintained a relatively safe record in mining-related accidents compared to neighbour China, which on average reports around 1,000 fatalities every year.

In 2015, India recorded 38 deaths across 570 mining sites.

The last major mining accident in India occurred in 1975, when 372 workers were killed following the flooding of Chasnala mine in Dhanbad.

WOMEN GRABS R.KELLY'S DICK. (SEE PHOTO)

R.Kelly was performing at a recent concert in Atlanta when he was assaulted by a group of women ..lol. He made the mistake of getting too close to fans, who grabbed and pulled at his groin area. He seemed to like it though, because he didn't pull back..

Chinese club offer Real Madrid £250m for Ronaldo

Real Madrid were offered about £250 million (about N125 billion) by an unnamed Chinese club for Cristiano Ronaldo, according to the Portuguese player’s agent Jorge Mendes.

He however said the 31-year-old forward had no interest in the deal, which included an £85m (about N42bn) annual salary.

“From China, they’ve offered 300m euros (£257m) to Real Madrid and more than 100m euros per year to the player.

“But money is not everything. The Spanish club [Real] is his life.’’

The revelation comes after Carlos Tevez was reportedly made the world’s highest-paid footballer by Shanghai Shenua.

Shanghai, coached by ex-Brighton boss Gus Poyet, are reported to have agreed a deal worth £40m (about N20bn) for Tevez, including a salary in excess of £310,000 (about N155m) a week.

Under the offer claimed by Mendes, Ronaldo would have earned £1.6m (about N800m) a week.

It would have been a deal worth almost treble the world record transfer fee of £89m paid by Manchester United to Juventus for midfielder Paul Pogba.

“The Chinese market is a new market. They can buy a lot of players, but then again it is impossible to go for Ronaldo.

“Cristiano is the best player in the world and best ever. It is normal to have some offers,” said Mendes.

The Portugal captain said he could play for another 10 years after signing a new deal, which ties him to Madrid until June 2021, last month.