Chances are slim for miners trapped by blast

Source: Xinhua  |   2008-12-19  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

TWENTY-SIX hours after 18 miners were trapped by a coal mine blast on Wednesday, rescuers still could not enter the mine in Lianyuan City, central China's Hunan Province, because of high gas density, officials said yesterday.

"Chances of their survival were slim," said Shi Jinchu, vice director of the city's production safety bureau.

More than 800 tons of coal blocked a 120-meter section of the seam, which hampered rescue work, said Yan Yinchu, deputy director of the provincial production safety bureau.

He said rescuers needed to reduce the gas in the mine before entering the seam.

The blast occurred at 3:15pm as 32 miners were working. Fourteen managed to escape.

Rescuers are trying to contact the trapped miners.

The township-owned Guaziyan colliery opened in 1997. It has a designed annual capacity of 30,000 tons but has sought to double that level.

Meanwhile in Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, five miners were trapped after a coal mine collapsed yesterday, the local authorities said.

The accident happened at the Chen°?xingyuan Coal Mine around 6am. One miner managed to escape. Rescuers are searching for the others.