Nine killed, 38 trapped in China coal mine blast

Nine mine workers were killed and 38 others trapped underground after a gas explosion rocked a coal mine in the south-western Chinese province of Sichuan.

About 152 miners were working underground at the Xiaojiawan coal mine in the coal-rich Panzhihua city when the blast occurred yesterday evening.

Nine people were confirmed dead by the rescuers, the state-run

Xinhua news agency reported. The dead included three miners who were lifted out of the pit but later died in hospitals.

Rescue work involving 76 people from seven professional teams is underway. The coal mine, owned by Zhengjin Industry and Trade Company Ltd in Panzhihua, is situated some 750 km southwest of the provincial capital Chengdu.

Hundreds of Chinese workers get killed in accidents in Chinese mines despite safety measures introduced by the government from time to time.