5:48
山西的煤矿大爆炸
Shanxi Coal Mine Explosion — 82 Miners Killed at Liushenyu
HSK 2 Chinese listening practice. The May 22, 2026 Liushenyu coal mine gas explosion in Shanxi — 247 miners underground, 82 dead, plus what reporters uncovered about ignored safety warnings, fines, and 'black workers' with no contracts.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 6 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 12 key vocabulary words such as 工作、新闻、公司 and walks through 6 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
说一个很难过的新闻。
Let me tell you a very sad news story.
最近，山西发生了一件大事。
Recently in Shanxi, something big happened.
一个煤矿出了大事。
A coal mine had a major accident.
死了八十多个人。
Over eighty people died.
还有两个人，到现在也没找到。
Two people, even now, haven't been found.
一百多个人受伤了。
Over a hundred people were injured.
全中国都在看这个新闻。
All of China is watching this news.
我们今天来说一下。
Let's talk about it today.
我们慢慢说。
Let's go slowly.
先说一下煤矿是什么。
First, let's say what a coal mine is.
煤矿就是从山下面挖煤的地方。
A coal mine is a place where people dig coal out from under a mountain.
煤是黑色的。
Coal is black.
煤可以烧。
Coal can burn.
人用煤来做电。
People use coal to make electricity.
中国有很多煤。
China has a lot of coal.
山西就是最有名的一个地方。
Shanxi is the most famous place for it.
山西有很多很多煤矿。
Shanxi has many, many coal mines.
很多山西人，做矿工。
Many people in Shanxi work as miners.
矿工就是去煤矿里工作的人。
A miner is a person who works in a coal mine.
他们每天下到山下面。
Every day they go down under the mountain.
山下面又黑又热。
Under the mountain it's dark and hot.
他们用机器挖煤。
They use machines to dig coal.
挖完了，再把煤拉上来。
Once they finish digging, they pull the coal back up.
这个工作很累。
This work is very tiring.
也很危险。
It's also dangerous.
为什么危险呢？
Why is it dangerous?
因为山下面有一种气。
Because there's a kind of gas under the mountain.
这个气，叫"瓦斯"。
This gas is called "wasi" — methane gas.
瓦斯看不见。
You can't see it.
也没有味道。
It has no smell either.
但是瓦斯遇到火，就会爆炸。
But when this gas meets fire, it explodes.
一爆炸，整个矿都会出事。
Once it explodes, the whole mine has an accident.
人在下面，跑不出来。
The people down there can't get out.
所以矿工的工作，是很危险的。
So the work of a miner is very dangerous.
他们每天下去。
Every day they go down.
都不知道能不能上来。
And they don't know if they can come back up.
他们的家里人，也每天都担心。
Their families are worried every day too.
担心他们安全回家。
Worried that they'll come home safely.
这次出事的矿，叫"留神峪煤矿"。
This time the mine that had the accident is called "Liushenyu Coal Mine."
在山西省长治市。
It's in Changzhi City, Shanxi Province.
是一家叫"通洲集团"的公司开的。
A company called "Tongzhou Group" runs it.
出事的时间，是五月二十二号晚上七点二十九分。
The accident happened at 7:29 p.m. on May 22.
那天晚上，矿里有两百四十七个矿工。
That night, there were 247 miners in the mine.
他们正在工作。
They were working.
忽然，瓦斯爆炸了。
Suddenly, the gas exploded.
整个矿摇了一下。
The whole mine shook.
火，烟，到处都是。
Fire, smoke — everywhere.
有的人，离爆炸的地方远，跑出来了。
Some people, who were far from the blast, escaped.
有的人，离得太近，没跑出来。
Some people, too close, did not.
出事以后，国家派了人去救。
After the accident, the country sent people to rescue them.
六支救援队，三百多人。
Six rescue teams, over three hundred people.
他们带着东西，一个一个去找人。
They brought equipment and looked for survivors one by one.
找了好几天。
They searched for several days.
最后，知道了：八十二个人死了。
In the end, they learned: 82 people died.
两个人，找不到。
Two people, they can't find.
一百多个人受伤。
Over 100 people are injured.
其中四个人，伤得很重。
Of those, four are in critical condition.
八十二个人，是什么意思？
What do 82 people mean?
是八十二个家庭，永远少了一个人。
It means 82 families are permanently missing a person.
有的人，是丈夫。
Some were husbands.
有的人，是爸爸。
Some were fathers.
有的人，是儿子。
Some were sons.
有的人，还很年轻。
Some were still very young.
有的人，还没结婚。
Some weren't even married yet.
有的人，孩子还在上小学。
Some had children still in primary school.
他们再也回不了家了。
They can never go home again.
他们的家人，等不到他们了。
Their families can no longer wait for them.
家里的电话再也响不起来了。
The phone in their house will never ring again.
后来，记者去查。
Later, reporters investigated.
查到了一些不好的事情。
They uncovered some bad things.
第一件，这个矿，其实不安全。
First: this mine was actually not safe.
两年以前，二零二四年。
Two years ago, in 2024.
国家就说：这个矿，有大问题。
The country had said: this mine has big problems.
瓦斯太多，很危险。
Too much gas, very dangerous.
但是矿没关。
But the mine wasn't shut down.
还是开着。
It stayed open.
还是有人下去。
People still went down.
第二件，去年这个矿被罚过两次。
Second: last year this mine was fined twice.
两次都是因为安全问题。
Both times for safety problems.
但是开矿的人没改。
But the people running the mine didn't fix anything.
他们觉得：罚一点钱没事。
They thought: paying a small fine is no big deal.
继续开。
Keep operating.
第三件，这二百四十七个矿工里，有一半是"黑工"。
Third: of those 247 miners, half were "black workers."
"黑工"就是不正规的工人。
"Black workers" means informal, unregulated workers.
他们没有签合同。
They hadn't signed contracts.
没有保险。
They had no insurance.
出了事，家里也不一定有钱。
When something happens, their families might not even get money.
这个事情让很多人很生气。
This whole thing made a lot of people angry.
大家说：为什么国家两年前就警告过，矿还开着？
People asked: why did the country warn about this mine two years ago, but it stayed open?
为什么这么多人是黑工？
Why were so many of them "black workers"?
为什么一定要等出大事，才有人管？
Why does it always take a major accident before anyone steps in?
现在，矿的老板被抓了。
Now, the boss of the mine has been arrested.
还有十几个人，也被抓了。
Over ten others have also been arrested.
国家也派了一个调查组。
The country also sent an investigation team.
要查到底是怎么回事。
To figure out exactly what happened.
要查谁的责任。
To figure out whose responsibility this is.
要查谁让这个矿一直开着。
To figure out who kept letting this mine operate.
但是不管怎么查。
But no matter how they investigate.
八十二个人，是回不来了。
82 people, they can't come back.
家里的位置，永远空着。
The seats in those homes will be empty forever.
这个事情。
This thing.
是中国十五年里，最大的一次矿难。
Is China's biggest mining disaster in 15 years.
这件事发生以后，很多人在网上说话。
After this happened, many people spoke online.
有人说：要给家属道歉。
Some said: someone needs to apologize to the families.
有人说：要把开矿的人都抓起来。
Some said: arrest everyone who runs these mines.
有人说：以后这种矿，不能再开了。
Some said: this kind of mine should never be allowed to open again.
但是大家都知道。
But everyone knows.
说是一回事。
Saying is one thing.
做又是另一回事。
Doing is another.
最后我想问你一个问题。
Finally I want to ask you a question.
在你的国家，有没有这样的工作？
In your country, is there work like this?
就是很累、很危险。
Work that's very tiring, very dangerous.
但是很多人还是去做？
But many people still do it?
为什么有人愿意去做这样的工作？
Why are people willing to do this kind of work?
是因为钱？
Is it because of the money?
是因为没有别的选择？
Is it because they have no other choice?
你想一想。
Think about it.
你的国家，是怎么照顾这些人的？
How does your country take care of those people?
HSK 1. Used many times — 危险的工作 = dangerous work; 矿工的工作 = the work of a miner.
HSK 2 noun. The whole episode is framed as a news story — a very sad one.
HSK 2 noun. 是一家叫'通洲集团'的公司开的 = it was run by a company called Tongzhou Group.
HSK 2 verb. 他们的家里人也每天都担心 = their family members are worried every day too.
HSK 2 adverb. Goes before the verb: 一起吃饭 = eat together.
HSK 2 adjective. Both literal (煤是黑色的 = coal is black) and figurative (黑工 = 'black worker' = informal/illegal worker).
Beyond HSK 1-2. The central topic noun. 煤 (coal) + 矿 (mine). The script glosses what a mine is.
Beyond HSK 1-2. 矿 (mine) + 工 (worker). The script glosses the term inline: 矿工就是去煤矿里工作的人.
Beyond HSK 1-2. The most feared word in Chinese coal mining. The script glosses it inline: 看不见，没有味道，遇到火就会爆炸.
Beyond HSK 1-2. 瓦斯爆炸 = gas explosion. The direct cause of the disaster.
HSK 3, beyond the HSK 1-2 target. The episode hammers this word repeatedly — coal mining is 危险.
HSK 3, beyond the HSK 1-2 target. 安全问题 = safety problems. Used when describing why the mine was penalized.
* beyond level超纲词
The 把 construction: re-orders the object before the verb to emphasize what is done to it. Requires a resultative verb.
再把煤拉上来。
因为... + 所以...
Cause-and-effect: 'because... so...'. Both clauses are typically kept in Chinese.
为什么危险呢？
因为山下面有一种气。
因为安全问题。
Subject + 让 + Object + Verb
让 = 'to let / cause / make'. Marks causation: A makes B do or be something.
这个事情让很多人很生气。
瓦斯遇到火，就会爆炸。
Verb + 着
着 after a verb marks an ongoing state or that the action is in progress.
矿没关。还是开着。
家里的位置，永远空着。
Subject + 觉得 + Clause
Use 觉得 to express opinion or feeling, followed by a clause.
他们觉得：罚一点钱没事。
这个工作很累。
其中 + Number + Noun
其中 means 'among them / of those'. Used to specify a subset.
其中四个人，伤得很重。
有一半是'黑工'。