The death tolls of two colliery accidents in the provinces of Heilongjiang and Guizhou, in the northeast and southwest of China, rose to 14 and 10 respectively yesterday, and one miner remains missing.

Jinyuan Coal Mine in Baoshan District of Shuangyashan City, Heilongjiang caught fire while 31 miners were underground on Sunday. Sixteen workers escaped, and one remains trapped.

Each of the victims' families, who have arrived at the site to identify the dead, will receive compensation of 200,000 yuan (US$24,710), according to the local rescue headquarters today.

Burned cables have been blamed for the fire. Unlicensed mines in the province have been ordered to shut down and safety checks begun.

Dahao Coal Mine in Fengcheng Township of Tianzhu County, Guizhou was flooded on Saturday and, though 26 miners escaped, 13 were trapped underground.

According to work safety officials, three were rescued and the remains of the other ten recovered more than 50 hours later.

Victims' families will be compensated 200,000 yuan (US$24,710) each and will receive another 10,000 yuan toward funeral costs.

An investigation into the cause of the flooding is being conducted.

 (Xinhua News Agency September 14, 2005)