Twenty-two die in flooded Chinese mine, 7 missing

BEIJING, Mar 11 (Reuters) A flood and gas leak in a colliery in northeastern China has killed 22 miners and 7 are missing, Xinhua news agency said today.

The accident happened yesterday evening at a mine in Liaoning province run by state-owned Fushun Mining Group, the agency quoted the local government as saying.

The 100-year-old Laohutai mine employs 7,200 people and produces 3.35 million tonnes of coal a year, Xinhua said. It is one of China's 45 most dangerous coal mines because of the high risk of flooding, fire and gas leaks.

China has the world's deadliest coal industry. Last year, 4,746 workers were killed in mine blasts, floods and collapses as collieries pushed production beyond safety limits to meet buoyant demand.

Coal mine accidents killed 357 more people in China in the first two months of this year, according to the State Administration of Work Safety.

Reuters MS DB2132