14 workers killed in coal mine explosion in China

 A coal mine gas explosion today killed 14 people in southwest China's Yunnan Province, officials said.

The accident took place in a pit of Hongtutian Coal Mine in Fuyuan County, in the city of Qujing, the county government said in a statement.

A total of 56 people were working in the pit, of whom 42 escaped without injuries and 14 were trapped, state run Xinhua news agency reported.

All Fourteen bodies have been recovered.

The county government claimed that Hongtutian is a private mine and is properly licensed for operation, the report said.