Search for workers continues in Chinese mine

State television reported on Tuesday that floodwaters and rising gas levels in the half-built Wangjialing mine in Shanxi province meant that the likelihood of the remaining miners being found alive was dwindling.

Nonetheless, rescue workers continued to search frantically on Wednesday, hoping against the odds to save some more people despite seven bodies having been found.

115 survivors found in stable condition

On Monday, 115 workers had been pulled out alive from the mine. "How fantastic to be on the ground again," one 27-year-old survivor was quoted as saying by the Xinhua state news agency.

The survivors were wrapped in green blankets and their blackened faces were covered with towels to protect them from the light after being in the dark for so long.

Most of the miners were in stable condition and could speak but were also very dehydrated.

Doctors were quoted by state media as saying they feared some of the miners could have suffered from gas poisoning because of the poor air.

Teams of rescue workers in blue and orange jumpsuits continued to search for workers who are still trapped.

Safety standards not heeded

The flooding reportedly happened because workers who were trying to finish building the mine so that it could start production in October dug into an adjacent mine that had been shut down and filled with water.

The mine owner, the Huajin Coking Coal Company, has been accused of ignoring safety standards and repeated warnings that water was building up in the pit in the days before the accident.

According to official statistics, an average of seven miners a day were killed last year. China's mining sector is notoriously dangerous. Coal provides about 70 percent of the booming country's energy needs.

act/AP/AFP/Reuters
Editor: Disha Uppal