12 workers trapped a week ago in China mine blast are alive

Rescuers drill a new channel at the explosion site of a gold mine in Qixia City, east China’s Shandong Province (Wang Kai/Xinhua via AP)

Twelve out of 22 workers trapped for a week by an explosion in a gold mine are alive, Chinese state media said, as hundreds of rescuers seek to bring them to safety.

The Xinhua News Agency said on Monday a note passed through a rescue shaft on Sunday night reported the fate of the other 10 remains unknown.