Deaths rise in Indonesia mine collapse

Rescuers recover a victim at the mine tunnel in West Sumatra, Indonesia, on Tuesday.
Search efforts entered a second day Wednesday for 14 people feared trapped by a mine collapse on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia, officials said.

The death toll from the collapse — triggered by a methane explosion Tuesday afternoon — climbed to 28 Wednesday, said Rustam Pakaya, head of crisis management for the Indonesian health ministry. It was unclear whether the 14 people feared trapped were still alive. Seventeen other people sustained burns in the explosion, with nine of them still hospitalized Wednesday. Rescuers from the nearby cities of Sawahlunto and Solok had been dispatched and were racing to save those feared trapped, Yanuar of the Padang search and rescue team said Tuesday. The Sawahlunto area is known for its rich coal and has been mined since 1875.

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