Survival was impossible for 65 coal miners trapped underground by an explosion that burned away oxygen and left toxic gases a week ago in northern Mexico, mining company officials announced today.

Air quality tests in a section of a Mexican coal mine where as many as 26 miners could have been working have shown there is not enough oxygen to sustain life, it was announced early today.

Relatives of 65 coal miners trapped underground for almost two days after a gas explosion grew increasingly desperate and frustrated today, as rescue workers provided no real news of their loved ones.