Nineteen miners were confirmed dead, and four others remain trapped after a coal-gas outburst hit a coal mine in southwest China's Guizhou Province on Saturday, rescuers said Sunday. The search is full in swing after gas density in the pit has declined, and rescuers are expected to reach the trapped miners this afternoon, said Yin Zhihua, vice mayor of Liupanshui, in a brief. Twenty-eight miners were working underground when the accident occurred at 10:55 a.m. at the Xiangshui Coal Mine, Xinhua quoted the provincial authorities as saying. By 9 p.m., five miners have been rescued, with one being in critical conditions, local officials said. According to government figures released in mid-October, 1,146 people died in 650 mining accidents this year. About 46.5 percent of the deaths were caused by illegal mining operations.
