Three government officials were dismissed after a city government meeting on Monday, in connection with a coal mine blast on Sunday that killed 15 people in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

The explosion in a shaft at the Changlong Coal Mine, in Xinxing District of Qitaihe City, left 15 miners dead.

Also, three rescuers died on Monday morning in a tunnel collapse as they searched for possible survivors who might still be trapped.

The dismissed officials were: Liu Li, former deputy Communist Party chief and head of the district; Yang Qi, former vice head, and Liu Wansheng, former candidate for district vice head.

The city government also advised the district to remove Liu Wansheng from the post of director of the district work safety bureau.

Police have also detained five executives of the coal mine. They were identified as Guo You, the legal representative; Chen Guohui, the manager; Su Haifeng, in charge of production; Li Jingwei, in charge of safety and ventilation, and Yang Wenchun, a safety inspector.

Poor ventilation of an unapproved working section caused the explosion, investigators said. The section escaped a safety inspection conducted on Thursday by the Xinxing District government.

Authorities had planned to close the mine at the end of 2007. But the mine owners subsequently appealed that decision and received approval to remain open. Investigators said they were trying to determine if there were any irregularities in that process.

The privately-owned coal mine is licensed and has an annual production capacity of 40,000 tons.

(Xinhua News Agency December 2, 2008)