Beijing: At least 19 miners have died and two are still missing in a cold mine accident this week in north China's Shanxi Province, state media reported today.
A total of 247 people were working in Jiangjiawan Mine when the incident occurred last Sunday when water from a ground-level reservoir flooded the coal mine in Datong City in Shanxi.
So far 223 people have been evacuated, while 21 were trapped.
While rescuers recovered 19 bodies, search is on for two others missing, Xinhua news agency reported.
As of Tuesday afternoon, about 6,100 cubic meters of water had been pumped out of the shaft.
The coal mine, owned by Datong Coal Mine Group, has an annual production capacity of 900,000 tonnes.
The group has ordered all its small mines, many of which were previously privately owned, to suspend production for safety checks.
An official said China is aiming for a "zero-death target" in coal mine work safety, that 10,500 coal mines -- or 95.4 per cent -- had achieved the target last year.
The number of deaths as a result of coal mine accidents dropped 86.7 per cent to 931 last year from about 7,000 in 2002 -- when the highest number of coal mine accidents was registered.
