Sixty-nine miners, trapped in a flooded coal mine for more than
three days, are now being pulled out one at a time in central
China's Henan Province, rescuer workers reported.
By midday Wednesday, 31 miners were pulled out alive. Several
could not walk without assistance. Some miners had to be put on
stretchers.
Twenty-five ambulances and 106 rescue workers waited on stand by
as the miners came above ground.? Ambulances rushed them to
nearby hospitals.
An applauding crowd greeted the first rescued man, identified as
Nan Jianning, when he was brought above ground. The other miners
are now being transported above ground in succession.
One hundred and two miners were working underground when the
Zhijian coal mine flooded at approximately 8:40 AM on Sunday. The
mine is located in Shanxian County, about 200 kilometers west of
Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan. Thirty-three managed to escape
immediately but 69 others were trapped until today.
(Xinhua News Agency August 1, 2007)
