Mine blast traps 35 in western China

At least 35 miners were trapped underground after a coal mine gas explosion in western China, state media reported today.

Xinhua news agency said the miners were trapped after the explosion in Baiyin city in Gansu Province.

It said four of the 39 miners working underground managed to escape unhurt when the explosion at a mine owned by Jingyuan Coal Industry Corporation happened and that a rescue operation was under way.

China’s poorly regulated mining industry is the deadliest in the world, with about 6,000 people dying each year in explosions, floods, collapses or other disasters.