BEIJING: Chinese rescuers drilled deep into the ground on Thursday in an increasingly desperate bid to save 21 miners now trapped for almost two weeks, with one confirmed dead and still no signs of life from over half of the missing workers, state media reported.
Twenty-two workers were entombed hundreds of metres underground at the Hushan mine near Qixia city in east China’s Shandong province after a January 10 explosion sealed the entrance and cut off communications.
Contact has been established with one group of miners, although one, seriously injured in the initial explosion, was confirmed dead late on Wednesday.
Another is believed to be trapped on his own, one hundred metres further down in rising waters, but his condition is unknown as he has not been directly reached by the rescue teams above.
The second group of 11 miners have also yet to be contacted, despite rescuers’ efforts.
“They have also been lowering life detectors and nutrient solutions to other sections to locate the other missing miners but continued to receive no life signs,” state news agency Xinhua reported.
Rescuers made contact on Sunday with a first group of 11 miners at a site around 580 metres (1,900 feet) below the surface.
Emergency responders have drilled two “lifeline” channels to deliver food and medicine and installed a telephone line while trying to widen a shaft to eventually allow the miners to be extracted. — AFP
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