Explosion Traps 65 Miners In Mexico

A gas buildup in a northern Mexico coal mine triggered a pre-dawn explosion Sunday, trapping at least 65 coal miners underground with a limited supply of oxygen. Emergency officials were tunneling through the debris to rescue them.

At least eight miners who had been near the mine's exit when the explosion occurred were rescued and were hospitalized with burns and broken bones.

The trapped miners were in extreme danger, said Ruben Escudero, director of Grupo Industrial Minera Mexico, which owns the mine. The company is a subsidiary of mining giant Grupo Mexico.

A statement by the National Miners' Union said 65 people were trapped below the surface, but Escudero said there were 66 miners still underground.

The explosion occurred at the mine near the town of Sabinas, 85 miles southwest of Eagle Pass, Texas, on the Mexico-U.S. border, Escudero said.

The mine is about 985 feet below ground, he said. Radio reports said the workers were in three different locations in the mine, and rescue workers were working to reach them while checking for poisonous gases.

Officials had cordoned off the area, and concerned family members waited outside the security zone for information.

Daniel Romo, a spokesman for Coahuila state's emergency services, said authorities did not know how long it would take to reach the trapped miners.

Coahuila Gov. Humberto Moreira Valdes arrived at the mine to supervise the rescue operation, which was being aided by Mexican soldiers and state police. Consuelo Aguilar, a spokeswoman for the National Miners' Union, said union officials were also at the scene to help.

Aguilar said there has been concern over safety conditions in Grupo Mexico mines.

"We have pressured for better safety conditions as well as for better pay at the mines," she said.

She called for an investigation to determine what caused the accident.

Juan Rebolledo, Grupo Mexico's vice president of international relations, said safety conditions at the mine met Mexican government requirements as well as international standards.

"We follow all the best safety procedures, but accidents can always happen," Rebolledo said.

The company discusses safety conditions with the union in annual meetings and there has been no major disagreement on the issue, he said.

As well as mining coal, Grupo Mexico is the world's third-largest copper producer, with operations in Mexico, Peru and the United States.

There have been various fatal mining accidents in Coahuila. The worst was in 1969 when more than 153 miners were killed in a pit at the village of Barroteran. In 2001, another 12 people died in an accident at a mine near Barroteran.

Last month, 14 miners died in two separate accidents at mines in West Virginia. Two men died in a fire Jan. 21 at a mine in Melville, nearly three weeks after 12 men died after an explosion near Tallmansville.

In Canada last month, 72 potash miners walked away from an underground fire and toxic smoke after being locked down overnight in airtight chambers packed with enough oxygen, food and water for several days.