Six dead in Mexico mine accident

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TORREON, Mexico — Six miners were killed and another rescued alive Friday after an accident in a coal mine in northern Mexico, officials said.

“Seven were trapped, one of them was rescued alive but unfortunately six were buried under the coal,” Francisco Orduna, a spokesman for mine operator Altos Hornos de Mexico, told Radio Formula.

The accident, which took place in the morning, was caused by a gas blast that caused a cave-in and 100 tonnes of coal to collapse onto the miners, Orduna said.

At the time of the accident, about 200 miners were working in the mine, located between the towns of Palau and El Sauce. Most were quickly evacuated.

The rescued miner was hospitalized and is in stable condition.

Last week, seven miners were killed in the same region in a gas blast.

Coahuila has seen a series of fatal mining accidents in recent years, including a 2007 disaster at the Pasta de Conchos mine that claimed 65 lives.

In a report published in November 2011, the country’s human rights commission denounced the poor conditions in mines in the state.