Water Hazards in Coal Mines and Their Classifications

Mine water hazards are often caused by mine water inrushes. Mine water inrush is a phenomenon in which a large volume of water unexpectedly gushes into underground workings or open pit mines when tunneling or mining exposes water-bearing media, such as high-pressure confined aquifers, surface water bodies, or underground mine pools. Mine water inrush generally occurs dramatically and can flood underground workings in a short period of time, jeopardizing mine production and causing casualties (Gui et al., J Geosci 10:180, 2017; Zhang et al., Arab J Geosci 10:503–513, 2017; LaMoreaux et al., Carbonates Evaporites 29:141–145, 2014).