Eighteen miners have been confirmed dead in Thursday's coal mine blast in Chongqing Municipality, southwest China.

Nineteen miners were trapped when the blast occurred at around 3:00 PM at the Sulongsi mine, a small operation in Fengjie County, near the Three Gorges Reservoir, said an official with the county government on Friday morning.

Earlier, an official with the rescue headquarters said that more than 100 people were participating in the rescue and recovery operations, with 37 of them working underground.

Gas density levels underground reportedly remained very high as rescue teams continued to search for the one miner still missing.

Investigation into the cause of the blast is underway.

(Xinhua News Agency March 18, 2005)