5 Nov 2011

50 missing after coal mine explosion

6:38 am on 5 November 2011

Four mine workers have been killed and 50 others are trapped underground in China after an explosion in a coal mine.

The accident happened late on Thursday in the city of Sanmenxia in Henan province.

State TV showed images of seven miners being carried out of the pit alive by rescue teams carrying oxygen tanks.

The Xinhua news agency says 75 people were working the mine when the blast occurred.

Earlier, it was reported that the incident happened shortly after an earthquake with a magnitude of 2.9.

The BBC reports a gas explosion at a mine in neighbouring Hunan province killed 29 people earlier this week.