Coal Mine Accident Traps 8 Miners Underground in N. China

Coal mine accident traps 8 miners underground in N. China

TAIYUAN, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) — Eight coal miners were trapped underground in a colliery blast in Taiyuan, capital of north China’s Shanxi Province, the provincial administration of coal mine safety supervision said Wednesday morning.

The accident took place at about 5 p.m. Tuesday at Jiuyuancun Colliery, a village-owned coal mine with an annual output of 60,000 tons, said Gong Anku, director of the administration.

The coal mine did not have the required production licenses and was ordered to suspend operation in September. But it went on with operation secretly until the blast happened, the administration said.

A local rescue team is working to reach the trapped miners. The owner of the mine has fled after the explosion and the cause of the accident is still under investigation.