State media now say 13 miners have been found dead after a gas explosion inside a coal mine in western China, and rescuers continue to search for another 20 people trapped inside.
The state-run Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday that rescuers had found the bodies of 13 people inside the Jinshangou coal mine in China’s Chongqing region where the explosion occurred before noon Monday.
Xinhua had previously reported 15 deaths in the explosion, but said Tuesday that Chongqing’s deputy mayor corrected previous reports from local coal mine safety authorities.
Local officials did not answer phone calls from The Associated Press, and a person answering the phone at the coal mine hung up.
Fifteen people have been confirmed dead from a gas explosion inside a coal mine in western China, and the status is still unknown for 18 others trapped inside.
Rescuers on Tuesday were still trying to locate survivors inside the Jinshangou coal mine in China’s Chongqing region where the explosion occurred before noon Monday.
Xinhua News Agency cited the Chongqing municipal coal mine safety inspection bureau in reporting the deaths. Local officials did not answer phone calls from The Associated Press.
Two people had been rescued earlier.
(Sourced from agencies, feature image courtesy:chicagotribune.com)
