A gas explosion in a coal mine in northern China today, killing 42 people and trapping 82 others in a shaft nearly a third of a mile under ground, government authorities said.
A total of 528 people were working in the Xinxing mine in Heilongjiang province at the time of the explosion, the State Administration of Work Safety said in a statement. It said 389 escaped after the blast.
China Central Television reported that 42 were dead, 26 were rescued and the others were trapped about a third of a mile under ground.
The report said the explosion was caused by a gas build-up. It shattered windows within 20 yards of the mine shaft.
The mine is located near the border with Russia, about 250 miles northeast of the provincial capital, Harbin.
It is run by one of China's top 520 state-owned enterprises, according to the website of its owner, the Hegang branch of the Heilongjiang Longmei Holding Mining Group. It said the Hegang branch has more than 88,000 employees.
PA