BEIJING (AFP) — Six people were confirmed dead in a flooded mine in southern China, state media said Tuesday, as hundreds of rescue workers scrambled to save 30 others still trapped deep underground.
The fatalities were reported a day after the Nadu mine in Guangxi Zhuang region flooded suddenly, the Xinhua news agency said.
A total of 56 were at work in the mine at the time of the disaster, the agency said earlier, citing the head of a rescue team.
Seven managed to escape immediately, while rescuers extricated another 13 during the night, according to Xinhua.
Rescuers told Xinhua earlier Tuesday they had managed to establish contact with 12 of the trapped miners.
They were about 2,000 metres (6,600 feet) from the mouth of the mine, and a lack of oxygen made it unlikely they would have the strength to get out by themselves.
Rescuers were trying to get mineral water and porridge to the trapped miners, Xinhua said. It did not say how, but the most likely method would be via a tube.
It was not clear whether the six people confirmed dead were among the batch of 12 that rescuers had intially made contact with.
Rescue teams were continuing Tuesday to pump water from the mine, while attempting to get in touch with those unaccounted for.
About 800 people were already involved in the rescue effort, and authorities had called for reinforcements from neighbouring areas, according to Xinhua.
There was some confusion about the number of people at work in the mine at the time of the disaster.
According to the website of the State Administration of Work Safety, there were 99 miners in the shaft, with 50 succeeding in escaping immediately.
However Xinhua, citing the rescue team, said there were just 56 there at the time of the flood. Both Xinhua and the administration said 36 had been trapped overnight.
The accident is the latest in a seemingly endless series of disasters to hit China's notoriously unsafe coal mining industry.
Nearly 3,800 lives were lost in Chinese coal mines last year, according to official figures, but independent labour groups say they believe the actual death toll is much higher as many are covered up.
China is the world's largest producer and consumer of coal, with demand rising along with the boom in the nation's economy.
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