200 feared dead in tunnel collapse at North Korean nuclear test site

Tokyo, October 31

More than 200 persons are feared to have died when a tunnel caved in at North Korea’s nuclear test site after its latest detonation, a Japanese news report said today.

A tunnel collapsed at Punggye-ri in early September, days after North Korea conducted its sixth and largest underground nuclear test on September 3, TV Asahi saiD.

Some 100 workers were involved in an initial collapse. Another cave-in occurred during rescue operations, leaving at least 200 persons feared dead in total, the Japanese broadcaster said. The accident was triggered by the test, TV Asahi added.

Experts have warned that the underground tests could cause the mountain to collapse and leak radiation into the atmosphere near China’s border. The latest test, the sixth at the site since 2006, triggered landslides in the detonation area and beyond, according to satellite pictures taken the day after.

The images published by the 38 North website showed changes in the surface at Punggye-ri where the ground had been lifted into the air by the tremors. Small landslides followed the course of stream beds. The blast caused a 6.3-magnitude earthquake, according to the US Geological Survey, followed a few minutes later by another with a magnitude of 4.1. — AFP