Gas blow-out ‘death zone’ leaves 200 dead

A GAS well blow-out in south-west China turned a 10 square mile area into a death zone, killing nearly 200 people as they slept or scrambled to escape a cloud of toxic fumes, officials and state media said yesterday.

Bodies of farmers and livestock were scattered over a wide area after the well, being drilled in mountains 200 miles northeast of Chongqing city, burst on Tuesday.

"The poisonous gas hovering in the air made an area of 25 sq km (10 sq miles) a death zone as many villagers were intoxicated by the fumes in their sleep," the China Daily newspaper said.