A gas explosion at a mine in northern China has left 21 workers trapped, the government's work safety agency said yesterday, amid reports that the colliery was operating illegally.
The accident occurred just after midnight on Sunday in Shanxi Province but local officials failed to immediately report the mishap, the State Administration for Work Safety said on its Web site.
Government and mine industry officials in Jincheng City refused to comment on the incident, but the Xinhua news agency said mine operators had tried to cover it up and that the mine was operating illegally.
"The responsible people have already been taken into police custody," the report said. "The mine had not followed official procedures and was illegally producing coal and expanding the area of extraction."
After news of the mine accident was reported, police sealed the mine as the government organized the rescue operation, Xinhua said.
Mine bosses and a survivor of the blast were being interrogated, it added.
Rescuers found the main shaft blocked but after removing the obstacles found that the elevator and elevator cable had been destroyed, further hampering efforts to locate the missing, it said.
China's mines are the world's most dangerous, with 4,746 miners dying in 2,845 accidents last year, according to official figures.
Independent labor groups put the death toll at as many as 20,000 miners annually.
In related news, police in Liaoning Province have arrested the head of the Dongfang coal mine where six miners died on Sunday after a fire, Xinhua said.
The mine boss was arrested for allegedly covering up the accident, it said.
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