Beijing, Sep 02: At least 16 miners were trapped today in a flooded coal mine shaft in Yichuan county in central China`s Henan province. According to local officials, the flooding happened around midnight yesterday at a working platform in Fenjin coal mine of Yichuan county, Xinhua news agency reported.

Apart from miners on duty, a construction team was also working below the shaft at the time of the accident.

Top provincial government officials have rushed to the scene for rescue operations, the report said.
Last month, a series of accidents in the coal rich province of Shanxi and other provinces claimed nearly 150 lives, following which some provincial governments decided to hold local officials responsible for mine safety.

Under a new law promulgated in Shanxi province on Sunday, senior officials at all levels will be held responsible for safety in coal mines and will be severely punished if casualties occur.

Liu Zhenhua, governor of the province, said it was of vital importance to control the number of mines and completely shut down unauthorised mines in the process of establishing efficient supervision of production safety.
Thousands of miners die each year in China`s coal mines and authorities blame most of the accidents to lax safety standards in private, village and county-run mines located in remote areas.

Bureau Report