BEIJING (Reuters) – Eight miners have been rescued and 21 remain trapped in a coal mine that flooded in the northwestern Xinjiang region of China, Chinese news agency Xinhua reported on Sunday. citing a local emergency department.
Part of the mine was flooded and caused power outages just after 6pm (1000 GMT) on Saturday, when 29 miners were working at the mine located in Xinjiang’s Hutubi County, according to the report.
In a separate report, state media Global Times said 12 of the trapped miners have been located at the mine as of Sunday and are expected to be rescued, while nine more workers have not been located.
Chinese mines are among the deadliest in the world.
Ten gold miners were confirmed dead in January after an explosion at a mine in China’s coastal province of Shandong.
In December, 23 people died after being trapped in a mine in the southwestern city of Chongqing. Three months earlier, 16 people had died at a coal mine in the same area.
State media said on Sunday that rescue efforts at the Xinjiang mine were underway.
Cate Puppy Reports in Beijing and Sabahatjahan Contractor in Bengaluru; Edited by Jacqueline Wong