Coal mine fire kills 16 in southwestern China

By Esra Tekin

ISTANBUL (AA) - A fire at a coal mine in China’s southwestern Guizhou province left 16 people dead, local authorities said on Sunday.

According to an official statement from the Panzhou city government, the incident took place in the Shanjiaoshu coal mine at around 8:10 a.m. local time (0010GMT), Beijing-based Global Times reported.

Preliminary investigation suggested that the conveyor belt caught fire, leaving 16 people trapped in the mine, the statement said, adding none of them were able to survive.

The fire was extinguished by Sunday evening and an investigation into the incident is underway.