At least 25 miners have died in a fire at a colliery in central China and three others remain trapped, state media said on Wednesday. The accident occurred in Xiangtan County in Hunan province, the official Xinhua news agency said, when underground cables caught fire. Though 43 miners escaped, rescuers said conditions were harsh. "Rescue work was extremely difficult, with too much toxic gas in the shaft after the fire," Xinhua quoted Wang Shuhe, deputy head of State Administration of Coal Mine Safety, as saying. The report added that the coal mine was privately-run and had 180 employees. It was being upgraded to double annual output to 60,000 tonnes, according to Reuters.
