At least 116 people are believed to have been killed in China's coal mines today, in the latest in a series of accidents which have claimed more than 2,700 lives so far this year.

Hopes were fading for the survival of 102 workers trapped by rising floodwater at Daxing Mine, a private colliery in Xingning, in the southern province of Guangdong. It is believed to have been caused by miners accidently breaking into a water channel 1,600ft below ground.

Millions of litres of water flooded the chamber and a desparate struggle was underway to pump it clear.

"Chances of the trapped workers surviving are relatively small," a vice mayor of nearby Meizhou told the state Xinhua news agency.

Meanwhile an explosion at a pit in Liupanshui, in southwest Guizhou province, killed at least 14 workers.

China relies on coal for more than two-thirds of its energy needs but accidents in the mining industry - including explosions, collapses, floods and fires - claimed 2,700 lives in the first half of 2005 alone.

The fatalities come days after 26 miners died in a gas leak and less than a month since an underground explosion killed 83.

High prices and the booming economy’s appetite for power encourage some mines to be run illegally and others to ignore regulations or push production beyond capacity.

Beijing recently announced the closure of a string of tiny private mines, often the worst violators of safety regulations, as well as the suspension of activities of 5,000 unlicensed operations for safety inspections.

China’s coal consumption is expected to rise by around six per cent this year.

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