9 dead, 57 still trapped after fire at Chinese iron ore mines

As of late Sunday, 40 miners had been rescued from the blaze at the mines in Baita township in Hebei province, the state administration of work safety supervision said on its website.

"Everybody has gone to the scene of the accident," an official at the township told AFP by telephone.

The fire was initially reported at 10:30 am (0230 GMT) Saturday in a privately-run mine in the township and rapidly spread to four nearby iron ore mines, while 106 people were working underground, the state administration said.