Rescue work drags on for 16 missing miners following an explosion at a coal mine of southwest China's Guizhou province.

The gas explosion happened at 4:00 p.m. Wednesday afternoon when 19 miners were working in Maolong coal mine of Tongzi county.

The accident killed three people, leaving another 16 missing, according to sources with the local mine safety bureau.

The sources noted that the blast caused a collapse in a sectionof more than 100 meters of a 430-meter tunnel. It would take two to three days for the rescuers to clear the way, they said.

Financial compensation is being arranged for the families of the three dead miners, the sources added.

Source: Xinhua