Bodies found in blast-hit Chinese mine

Rescuers have found 46 bodies in a coal mine that was rocked by an explosion in eastern China.

Dozens more trapped miners "have no hope of survival", according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

Xinhua didn't say how many miners were believed to be in the mine in Xuzhou, a city in the eastern province of Jiangsu. But figures reported earlier indicated as many as 47 were still missing after the explosion on Sunday morning.

The mine was closed in June because it lacked safety equipment, and illegally reopened this month, according to a local official. He said police had detained the mine owner.

"Those who are still trapped in the mine have no hope of survival," Xinhua said, citing unidentified sources.

China's coal mines are the world's deadliest, with thousands of miners killed every year by explosion, fire and underground floods.

Xinhua said the blast in the Xuzhou mine might have occurred in the coal bed or gas that collected in a tunnel.