As of Monday noon, the death toll of a colliery explosion on Sunday night in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province had risen to 68, with 79 people still missing, according to the local coalmine safety watchdog.

221 miners were working underground when the blast occurred at 9:40 PM Sunday at Dongfeng Coal Mine run by the Qitaihe branch of the Heilongjiang Longmei Mining (Group) Co. Ltd., the provincial coal mine safety administration told Xinhua.

A 269-member rescue team has been going all-out to search for the miners trapped in the shaft. Rescuers have found 74 miners, 52 of whom have been hoisted to the ground, according to the rescue headquarters.

Investigators said the coal-dust explosion disabled all ventilation systems in the pit. By Monday morning, the main ventilation system was in operation again.

Longmei Group is a mining conglomerate of four state-owned major coal businesses in the province. It has a registered capital of 13 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion).

Rescue operations continue.

(Xinhua News Agency November 28, 2005)