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Coal mine flooding traps 23 people in Henan

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-09-07 14:26

Twenty-three people were trapped in a flooded coal mine in central China, authorities said Sunday.

The State Administration of Coal Mine Safety said in a statement on its website that the flood swamped the mine in Yuzhou city of Henan province early Sunday morning.

The Xinhua News Agency said more than 50 miners were working in the shaft.

The report cited local authorities as saying that about 30 of the workers managed to escape, while a rescue operation was under way to save the miners still trapped underground at the Fushun coal mine. The administration's website said 23 people were missing.

Xinhua said the mine is owned by the Hebi Coal Industry (Group) Co. Ltd. based in Henan's Hebi city.

Phone calls to the mine owner and the Yuzhou city coal mine safety bureau rang unanswered Sunday.