Scores Killed In China Coal Mine Blast

(RFE/RL) 28 November 2005 -- Chinese state media say 68 miners were killed and another 79 are trapped underground after an explosion at a coal mine in China's northeast Heilongjiang Province.

A total of 221 miners were underground when the accident at the Dongfeng coal mine near Qitaihe city in Heilongjiang Province occurred on 27 November.


The official Xinhua state news agency says 74 miners have been rescued.


An investigation has been launched into the cause of the explosion.


Chinese mines are among the most accident-prone and deadliest in the world, with thousands of fatalities reported each year.


(AP/AFP)