According to Chinese state media, 12 out of 22 workers trapped for a week by an explosion in a gold mine are alive, while hundreds of rescuers want to bring them to safety.
The Xinhua News Agency said on Monday a letter passed by a rescue worker on Sunday night reported that the fate of the other ten was still unknown.
The handwritten note said that four of the workers were injured and that the condition of others was deteriorating due to the lack of fresh air and the inflow of water.
Rescuers drilled a new canal on Monday at the site of a gold mine that exploded in Qixia City, China. (AP / Xinhua)
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Drivers of the operation were detained after failing to report the accident for more than a day. The mine in Qixia, a jurisdiction under the city of Yantai in Shandong province, was under construction at the time of the January 10 explosion.
More than 300 workers want to clear up obstructions while drilling a new shaft to reach the rooms where the workers are trapped and expel dangerous fumes.
“Keep up the rescue efforts. We have hope, thank you,” read the note, written in pencil on notebook paper and posted on Xinhua’s official website.
Chinese state media say 12 out of 22 workers trapped for a week by an explosion in the gold mine are alive as hundreds of rescuers want to bring them to safety. (AP / Xinhua)
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The Chinese mining industry has a reputation for undercutting safety requirements amid high demand for coal and precious minerals.
Two accidents in the southwestern megacity of Chongqing last year killed 39 miners, prompting the central government to set up another security recovery.