Beijing, June 10: After a two-week-long effort, rescue workers have recovered the bodies of nine miners from a flooded coal mine at Anyang city in central China's Henan province, an official report said today. The bodies of six other miners, whose chances of survival are "little", are still missing, Xinhua news agency reported from the provincial capital, Zhengzhou. A total of 42 miners were working down the shaft in Anli coal mine when it was flooded on May 24, but 27 escaped, leaving 15 at the end of the shaft trapped. The rescue efforts, involving over 200 workers, were at one stage halted by renewed flooding and increased gas density days after the calamity.

Officials in charge of the rescue work said they would try their utmost to recover the rest of the trapped miners, but the rescuers' safety must be ensured first.


To date, 961 meters of the flooded shaft have been cleared and 1,800 tonnes of silted coal removed.

Situated in Long'an district of Anyang city, the Anli coal mine has produced 60,000 tonnes of coal a year since 1997.
Bureau Report