A survivor is carried out by rescuers in a mine after a fire accident in Benxi, northeast China's Liaoning Province, July 8, 2016. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)
Eleven people have been confirmed dead, with one still missing and one rescued after a fire broke out underground at an illegal mine in northeast China's Liaoning Province, local authorities said on Friday afternoon.
The mine in Xihu District, Benxi City caught fire around 3 a.m. on Monday, trapping 13 miners about 500 meters underground.
On Thursday, two bodies were found in the shaft.
Nine more bodies were found on Friday. Rescuers are still looking for the trapped miner, according to the city's work safety bureau.
The rescued miner has been sent to a nearby hospital.
Hao Chijun, head of the bureau, said the colliery was shut down in 2004, but its owner secretly continued operations by building a coal washing plant and hiding the shaft within it.
Hao said a normal mine shaft should have at least two openings, one for miners and the other for coal, which can also ensure ventilation, but the illegal mine only had one.
