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Scores trapped in China coal mine | Scores trapped in China coal mine |
(about 5 hours later) | |
Chinese emergency teams are searching for 172 miners trapped in a flooded coal mine, state media has reported. | |
Officials told Xinhua news agency the workers have only a slim chance of survival in the mine, in Xintai city 450km (280 miles) south of Beijing. | |
The agency reported that hundreds of troops and police were at the scene helping rescue teams. | |
China's coal mines are among the most dangerous in the world, with more than 5,000 deaths reported annually. | China's coal mines are among the most dangerous in the world, with more than 5,000 deaths reported annually. |
Hopes were also fading for the survival of nine other miners, trapped in another mine nearby. | |
Banks burst | |
Describing the Xintai flood, local official Zhang Dekuan said: "There were 756 miners working under the ground when the accident occurred." | |
Of these, 584 managed to escape from the pit, he said. | |
Xinhua reported that the mine, in eastern China's Shandong province, was overrun with surface water at about 1430 local time (0630 GMT) on Friday. | Xinhua reported that the mine, in eastern China's Shandong province, was overrun with surface water at about 1430 local time (0630 GMT) on Friday. |
The area was hit with about 205mm of rain, triggering flash floods and bursting the banks of the nearby Wen river. | |
Floodwater from the river swamped the coal mine via an old shaft, Xinhua said. | |
About 2,000 Chinese army troops, armed police and miners are trying to shore up the river's banks. |