400 killed in flooded mine

An official Chinese Web site today said a flood in a mine killed about 400 people, even as local officials continued to deny any deaths.

People.com - a website run by the People’s Daily, the Communist Party’s official newspaper - said only three of about 400 miners are known to have escaped the July 16 accident at a tin mine in Nandan, a village in Guangxi province.

But an official at the Guangxi industrial safety office said that Government investigators had not found any deaths. Provincial and mine officials have confirmed the flooding but called the casualty reports fabrications.

State-run newspapers and Web sites have been reporting 200-300 people missing and feared dead. Official newspapers and Web sites based in large cities like Beijing and Shanghai have accused local officials of trying to cover up the deaths.

People.com said its information came from one of the survivors, who it said agreed to be interviewed despite threats and bribery attempts by the mine’s boss. It said a reporter also used a disguise to sneak onto the accident site.

The site said four groups of about 100 miners were trapped inside when water rushed in from an underground source possibly an abandoned mine nearby.

Thousands of workers die each year in China’s mines, which often lack even basic safety equipment such as ventilators and fire extinguishers.

Most miners are untrained farmers and illegal operations are often protected from safety inspectors by corrupt local officials.