Relief as trapped miners are rescued
Eleven Chinese goldminers have been lifted to the surface after being trapped by an explosion 600m below the ground, to the surprise and relief of their families and rescuers.
Images from state television showed the men emerging from the mine in Qixia in eastern Shandong province.
One of them was carried out in what was described as a very weak condition, but most were able to walk to waiting ambulances.
Several of them pressed their palms together in a gesture of gratitude to more than 600 rescue workers, who applauded as they emerged to safety.
One man died last week from head injuries caused by the explosion that blocked the main shaft and trapped 22 men in the mine on January 10. There has been no sign of ten others who remain underground.
On Friday the authorities warned that it could take two weeks to drill a rescue shaft, so there was delight on Sunday at the sudden salvation of all the miners to have been located.
Rescuers had thought that rocks had filled up the main mine shaft from the bottom but in fact one large rock had blocked it, leaving empty space below.
‘‘On Sunday morning, a huge obstacle blocking the well suddenly fell to the bottom of the shaft, allowing rescue work to take a big step forward,’’ Du
Bingjian, the lead rescue worker, told the state-run
The first miner to be rescued, separated from the others and the one in the worst physical state, was found by rescuers who were clearing debris from the main shaft and came to the surface at 11.18am.
The other ten were successfully contacted on January 17. They were brought up individually and had all been rescued by mid-afternoon.
Managers of the mine are being investigated after having taken 30 hours to report the explosion and the blockage, which appears to have been caused by dynamite used in the construction of the new mine.