12 Chinese miners are missing after an explosion at their pit as hopes faded for 181 miners in an eastern province trapped underground for two weeks.
Today’s blast ripped through the coal mine when workers were repairing the shaft in Baofeng in Henan province.
Hopes have dimmed for the 181 miners trapped in a state-owned colliery in Shandong province which flooded on 17 August.
China's coal industry is the deadliest in the world, with 2,163 miners killed in 1,320 accidents in the first seven months of 2007.
