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6 rescued, 18 trapped in Henan coal mine

(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-09-08 07:30

Six miners were pulled out of a flooded coal mine in Henan province Sunday but 18 of their fellow workers were still trapped underground.

Rescuers said 62 miners were carrying out maintenance work when water gushed into the Renhe Coal Mine in Changzhuang, Yuzhou city, around 5:45 am Sunday. Thirty-eight of the miners, however, managed to escape.

"The six rescued miners are not seriously injured," a spokesman for the rescue headquarters said. "But they have been taken to hospital for observation."

More than 40 rescuers are trying to get the trapped people out of the flooded mine, from which water is being flushed out by six pumps. A giant fan is being used to provide fresh air to the trapped workers.

About 300 cu m of water flowed into the pit when the workers were digging in the mines' waste area, rescuers said.

The Renhe Coal Mine, a former private business venture called Fushun Coal Mine, can produce 150,000 tons of coal a year. The Stated-owned Hebi Coal Industry (Group) Co, acquired it three years ago. The mine has been undergoing technological upgrade.

Xinhua