China says 10 workers trapped in gold mine are searching for others
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[January 22, 2021]
By Emily Chow
QIXIA, China (Reuters) - The 10 known
survivors trapped since a deadly Jan. 10 gold mine explosion in northern
China have been using laser pointers and loudspeakers to try to find
their missing colleagues, state media reported on Friday.
The rescue operation, which has been able to get food and medicines to
the miners, was expected to take at least another two weeks, authorities
have said.
White bottles of food and water sent down to the trapped workers had a
note stuck on them saying, "We are all waiting for you, keep going!",
photos shared by propaganda department officials with Reuters on Friday
showed.
The food items sent to the workers include millet porridge, quail eggs,
pickles and sausages and medical supplies included disinfectant, masks
and cotton socks.
"The physical condition, psychological condition and living environment
of 10 miners in the middle section of the mine are good," the People's
Daily, the official newspaper of China's ruling Communist Party,
reported on Friday.
"The miners continued to search for other trapped persons through laser
pointer projection and loudspeaker shouting," it said.
A total of 22 workers were trapped in the Hushan mine by the Jan 10
blast in Qixia, a major gold-producing region under the administration
of Yantai in coastal Shandong province.
One has died and 11 were not in contact with the rescue teams, according
to a Xinhua radio report on Thursday.
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Rescuers work at the Hushan gold mine where workers were trapped
underground after the Jauary 10 explosion, in Qixia, Shandong
province, China January 22, 2021. REUTERS/Aly Song
At least 15 days may be needed to clear the "severe blockages" as
rescuers continued to drill shafts to reach the 10 men, officials
said on Thursday.
At the site, security was tight on Friday and Reuters journalists
were not permitted to get close to the rescue operation.
Workers in orange high visibility clothing could be seen operating
heavy machinery. At the entrance to the site, a medical tent had
been set up to administer COVID tests for rescue workers.
About 570 people are involved in the rescue, the newspaper said.
China's mines are among the world's deadliest. It has recorded 573
mine-related deaths in 2020, according to the National Mine Safety
Administration.
(Reporting by Emily Chow in Qixia and Beijing newsroom; Writing by
Shivani Singh; Editing by Tony Munroe and Philippa Fletcher)
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