Casualties from China Mine Gas Leak Reaches 31

The discovery of five more bodies from a gas leak at a coal mine in in Yuzhou city in central Henan province China, pushed the death toll up to 31 so far.

A gas leak of an estimated 6 million cubic feet released pressure which caused up to 2,500 tons of coal gas to be thrown into the mine pit, operated by Pingyu Coal & Electric Co. Ltd.

There are another six miners who remain unaccounted for and trapped in the mine, whose chances f survival are considered slim at best. Of the 276 miners working at the time, 239 escaped.

This isn't the first time a gas leak caused the death of workers, as in 2008 another one killed 23 miners.

The accident happened at 5:00 PM EDT on Sunday.