Yet another tragic coal mining accident, this time in New Zealand. It once again brings into focus the loss of life that coal mining has always been responsible for.
Surely, it makes yet another argument for using clean nuclear energy as an alternative to this dirty form of energy that according to statistics found in wikipedea and elsewhere on the web, accounts for nearly six thousand deaths from coal mining and some four thousand incapacitated by lung disease EACH YEAR.
Admittedly the greater proportion of these happen in China where obviously safety is not adhered to in such a strict way as many other Western countries. However, I wonder if only a dozen deaths or injuries were incurred using a nuclear power station (not withstanding Chernoby) what sort of uproar would be caused by the anti nuclear mob in declaring it a totally unacceptable form of producing electricity. It appears that we have the means of disposing of waste using synroc and the many modern power stations around the world are being used productively and safely using uranium, without all the pollution that we are finding so hard to reduce and which is affecting so much of our environment.

Nothing is without some risk but it seems to me coal mining proves to be a far greater one where human life is concerned.

Not sure that you can make the case for nuclear being safer than coal as an energy source, snake.

Of course, coal-mining disasters are terrible but they are only a tiny fraction of the negative consequences of our addiction to coal. Nuclear energy would be a wonderful replacement if it was utilised to maximum efficiency and with minimum downsides. But unfortunately, humans are humans, and that means that it will never be utilised without significant compromises to its efficiency and big negative consequences or risks thereof.

It should not be a matter of coal (or fossil fuels) versus nuclear energy. There is a wide variety of renewable (sustainable) alternative energy sources.

But the biggest factor, that still just gets left out of discussions like this all too often, is the need to stop bloody well continuously increasing our population, per-capita consumption and hence our energy requirements.

Grasping at straws or just stretching it too far
Mining is not all coal and open cut mines exist.
We are aware are we? that mining is involved in Nuclear power.
Miners die at work, we must continue to try to stop this.
But using this tragic event to push wheel barrows is a bit sad.

Does anybody know how many women were among the trapped miners?

Ah anti, you and your love of the manly miners doing the risky hard work that those coshered women wont do.

The media would have found that out pretty quick if there was woman down there. I'm sure if there was a woman in there anti, it would be that much more tragic;-) Especially if she was pretty.

I hear kochie is there?

Houellebecq:"I'm sure if there was a woman in there anti, it would be that much more tragic;-) Especially if she was pretty."

That was what I was thinking. I reckon there should be a woman on every shift at every mine in the world, just in case there's an accident. The media deserves it.

It could only get better if she had sex underground then regretted it later...