5 dead in mine roof collapse in SW China

BEIJING (AP) — At least five workers were killed when a roof collapsed at a mine in southwest China amid hopes of rescuing 47 miners trapped under tons of rubble following a disaster at a northern mine last week seem to be fading.

Fatal mining accidents occur regularly in China, although authorities have managed to reduce the death toll by emphasizing safety and closing small operations that lacked the necessary equipment.

At the mine in Sichuan province, 25 miners were underground when part of the roof collapsed on top of them on Sunday morning. Five died, three were seriously injured and the rest escaped unscathed, the provincial Emergency Management Department said. Reports said the mine was not coal, without giving further details.

Meanwhile, salvage work continued at the Alxa League open pit mine in Inner Mongolia province. The death toll remains at six and six other workers were saved alive. The cause of a mine wall collapse six days ago is being investigated and there are several detainees, although it is unclear how many.

Chinese President Xi Jingping has called for search and rescue efforts “by all means”, and local authorities have ordered inspections and safety upgrades at other mines in Inner Mongolia that produce much of the coal, metals and rare earths on which the Chinese economy depends.

No one responded to calls made to the Ministry of Emergency Management on Monday. In the latest official report on salvage efforts on Saturday, it said rubble from two corridors had already been cleared to introduce more equipment, and radars capable of detecting objects underground were also being used.

Earlier, more than 1,000 rescuers were dispatched to the site, where they are using heavy machinery, life detection equipment and rescue dogs.

Hours after the initial collapse, another mudslide forced rescue efforts to be suspended for several hours during the crucial period to save survivors. Since then, rescuers have been digging carefully in layers to avoid causing further cave-ins.