BBC News Online: World: Asia-Pacific

Rescue work continues at China mines

Rescue workers at two mines in China say there's been no progress so far in efforts to bring more than 60 trapped workers back to the surface.

Nearly 40 people were trapped on Friday when water flooded a coal mine in the southwestern province of Sichuan; while more than 20 others became trapped when the roof caved in at a gypsum mine in Guangxi province in the south of the country.

Officials in Guangxi described the situation there as very complicated.

A provincial official in Sichuan said the provincial governor and his deputy had gone to the mine to inspect the rescue operation.

Nearly 5,000 miners died in accidents at Chinese pits last year, according to official figures, and correspondents say safety standards are often rudimentary.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service