Dozens killed in China mine blast (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

At least 70 miners have been killed - and another 26 are still trapped - after an underground explosion at a coal mine in central China.

The blast occurred at the Rui Zhiyuan mine in Shanxi province's Linfen city, state-run news agency Xinhua said. It is not clear what caused it.

Xinhua said 15 miners had either been rescued or escaped themselves.

China's mines are among the most dangerous in the world, with about 5,000 deaths reported every year.

Rescue mission

"After the accident occurred, the mine sent in a rescue team of 32 people, but soon after they were trapped as well," a spokeswoman for the government department on safety at work, An Yuanjie, told the AFP news agency.
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7130125.stm