Miners rescued after week trapped in flooded shaft

Dozens of Chinese coal miners were pulled out alive today after being trapped for more than a week in a flooded shaft, sparking cheers among hundreds of rescue workers who had raced to save them and almost given up hope.

Dozens of Chinese coal miners were pulled out alive today after being trapped for more than a week in a flooded shaft, sparking cheers among the hundreds of rescue workers who had raced to save them and had almost given up hope.

A live state television broadcast counted off the number of survivors - now up to 35 - as miners wrapped in blankets were hurried to ambulances that sped to nearby hospitals.

State television said rescuers were preparing to pull as many as 70 to 80 miners out of the mine, though conditions underground remain complicated. A total of 153 workers had been trapped.

"A miracle has finally happened," a rescue headquarters spokesman, Liu Dezheng, said.

The first rescue yesterday had seemed beyond hope for days before crews heard tapping from deep underground on Friday.

Some of the soaked miners had hung from shaft walls by their belts for days. Hundreds of rescuers were underground with hopes that glimpses of swinging lights and new tapping sounds meant even more survivors could be found.

Mr Liu said the first batch of nine rescued miners, who were pulled out shortly after midnight local time, were in a stable condition.

The state-run Xinhua News Agency said all nine were conscious and could say their name and home town, but their bodies had suffered from being soaked for so long. Television footage showed at least one miner was brought out barefoot.

China Central Television said some miners managed to attach themselves to a wall with their belts when the water rushed in, and they hung there for three days before getting into a mining cart that floated by.

The miners had been trapped since March 28 when workers digging tunnels broke into a water-filled abandoned shaft.

Before rescuers heard tapping noises from below Friday, they had feared this would be China's deadliest mine disaster in more than two years.

The families of some of the survivors spoke of their delight.

"He called and managed to say my sister's nickname, Xiaomi, so we know it's really him and that he's alive," said Long Liming after receiving a call from his rescued brother-in-law Fu Ziyang.

A doctor then took the phone and said Fu had to rest. Long added: "He was trapped underground for so long, so he's very weak. But we are very relieved to know that he made it out safely."