All trapped Chinese miners rescued

BEIJING, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- China Wednesday reported the rescue of all 69 miners, who had been trapped since Sunday in a flooded coal mine in central Henan province.

Xinhua news agency reported the first of the 69 miners emerged from the shaft at 11:38 a.m. and the last one was brought out 76 minutes later. The report said the miners were greeted by a large crowd that had gathered near the mine.

Most of the 69 miners were so weak they could barely walk by themselves and had to be helped to stretchers, Xinhua said. They were taken to nearby hospitals.

"It's one of the most successful rescue operations in recent years," the head of the State Administration of Work Safety said.

The state-owned Zhijian coal mine reportedly was flooded by a rain-swollen river Sunday morning. The mine is about 120 miles west of the provincial capital of Zhengzhou.

There were 102 workers in the mine when it was flooded but 33 managed to escape, the report said.

The flooding didn't damage the ventilation and communication facilities. The miners were supplied with milk poured through the ventilation pipes.