Nine coal miners, trapped underground for eight straight days by a flash flood, have all been pulled out alive from the deep mine pit Friday and are now in a satisfactory condition.
They were toiling in a coal pit in Zichang County in northwestern Shaanxi Province, on the night of July 4, when a sudden rainstorm struck and inundated the region. Torrential floodwater and debris from surrounding mountains gushed down and sealed off the pit, trapping the miners underground.
A large number of rescuers identified their feeble calls for help on Friday morning, and the fully-equipped and manned rescue team, including some 20 medical workers standing in vigil around the clock at the entrance of the mining pit, immediately swung into action.
All nine were retrieved from the pit after three hours of continuous, intensified efforts. Two miners remained unconscious when they were brought out to the ground, and the remaining seven were barely breathing at the time, a doctor at the scene said.
They were immediately taken to a nearby hospital after being given the first aid. All were now out of danger, doctors at the hospital confirmed.
It was astonishing in the annals of rescue work for people trapped underground for 200 hours to survive, a local official said.
(Xinhua News Agency July 12, 2002)
