8 more bodies recovered at China mine where 115 saved; death toll at 33, search continues

8 bodies recovered at China mine where 115 saved

BEIJING — Rescuers recovered five more bodies Sunday at a flooded mine in northern China, bringing the death toll to 33 and leaving little hope of finding survivors, state media reported.

Authorities continued pumping water from the pit where 115 workers were rescued last week after more than a week trapped underground.

The Wangjialing mine flooded March 28 when workers digging tunnels broke into a water-filled abandoned shaft. Of the 153 miners originally trapped, five are still missing, Xinhua News Agency said.

It was unlikely anyone could survive nearly two weeks underground. No signs of life have been detected since the dramatic rescues on April 5.

The miners who survived ate sawdust, tree bark, paper and even coal, and some strapped themselves to shaft walls with their belts to avoid drowning.

A preliminary investigation found the mine’s managers ignored water leaks before the accident.

China’s mining industry is the world’s deadliest, where accidents killed 2,631 coal miners last year. That’s down from 6,995 deaths in 2002, the most dangerous year on record.