166 workers trapped after China mine collapse

At least 166 workers were trapped today after an explosion tore through a central Chinese coal mine, sending smoke billowing out from air vents, the government said.

Another 127 workers escaped when the blast rocked the state-owned Chenjiashan coal mine in Shaanxi province at 7.20am (11.20pm Irish time), when 293 workers were underground, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

It was centred around coal pits five miles from the mine entrance, it said.

Most who managed to escape were working close to the mouth of the mine, it said, and many suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning. Some 41 were taken to hospital.

President Hu Jintao urged rescuers to employ “all effective measures” to save the trapped workers, China Central Television said.

China’s mines are the world’s most dangerous, with thousands of deaths reported every year due to explosions, fires, cave-ins and flooding often blamed on lax safety rules and lack of required equipment.