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| India mine blast 'traps dozens' | India mine blast 'traps dozens' |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Officials in India's eastern state of Jharkhand say work to rescue more than 50 miners trapped inside a coal mine is being hampered by poisonous gases. | |
| The miners were trapped after an explosion at the Bhatdith colliery which is run by the state-owned company Bharat Coking Coal Limited. | |
| Authorities say the chances of the men surviving are slim. | |
| Jharkhand, which has India's largest coal deposits, has suffered a number of mining accidents in recent years. | Jharkhand, which has India's largest coal deposits, has suffered a number of mining accidents in recent years. |
| The BBC's Salman Ravi in the Jharkhand state capital, Ranchi, says only five miners who were working at the upper levels of the 460m-deep (1,500-foot) mine in western Jharia region have emerged after an explosion rocked the mine on Wednesday evening. | |
| This is an unprecedented situation and the chances of their survival are zero Partha Bhattacharya Bharat Coking Coal Limited | This is an unprecedented situation and the chances of their survival are zero Partha Bhattacharya Bharat Coking Coal Limited |
| "The explosion was so powerful that I was thrown off my feet and I saw a trolley loaded with coal get ripped apart and break up," said Nunu Lal, a miner who managed to come out. | "The explosion was so powerful that I was thrown off my feet and I saw a trolley loaded with coal get ripped apart and break up," said Nunu Lal, a miner who managed to come out. |
| Officials said the cause of the explosion is unclear. | Officials said the cause of the explosion is unclear. |
| Coal fires | Coal fires |
| Rescue work has been badly affected because the high levels of carbon monoxide and methane gas in the mine. | |
| "This is an unprecedented situation and the chances of their survival are zero," Bharat Coking Coal Limited chairman Partha Bhattacharya told Reuters news agency. | "This is an unprecedented situation and the chances of their survival are zero," Bharat Coking Coal Limited chairman Partha Bhattacharya told Reuters news agency. |
| Mine disasters are not uncommon in mineral-rich Jharkhand state, home to a host of old, state-owned coal mines. | Mine disasters are not uncommon in mineral-rich Jharkhand state, home to a host of old, state-owned coal mines. |
| In the Jharia area, where Wednesday's blast took place, mining work has been affected by underground fires that have raged since 1916, reports say. | In the Jharia area, where Wednesday's blast took place, mining work has been affected by underground fires that have raged since 1916, reports say. |
| Experts say the fires have been caused by unscientific and illegal mining. | Experts say the fires have been caused by unscientific and illegal mining. |
| Mine workers have died after mines have collapsed due to flooding in the past. | Mine workers have died after mines have collapsed due to flooding in the past. |
| Accidents also happen when villagers enter abandoned mines to pick up coal - in August, between 30 and 40 people were trapped inside a mine after water from the nearby Damodar river flooded it. | Accidents also happen when villagers enter abandoned mines to pick up coal - in August, between 30 and 40 people were trapped inside a mine after water from the nearby Damodar river flooded it. |
| There have been other accidents when the mines have simply caved in. | There have been other accidents when the mines have simply caved in. |
| The state's worst mine collapse occurred in 1975, when nearly 400 miners were killed. | The state's worst mine collapse occurred in 1975, when nearly 400 miners were killed. |