BEIJING — A flood left dozens of workers trapped in a coal mine in northern China's Inner Mongolia region on Monday, the mine's owner said.
The number of people trapped in the mine, which was under construction, was not immediately clear.
National safety officials told the official Xinhua news agency that 44 were trapped, but the mine's owners said in a statement that 31 were missing.
The incident at the Luotuoshan Coal Mine in Wuhai City, about 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) west of Beijing, occurred early Monday morning.
An initial investigation showed that water began entering the mine as workers were digging, said the statement by mine operator Wuhai Energy Company and its parent Shenhua Group.
It gave no other details.
China's coal mines are among the most dangerous in the world, with safety standards often ignored in the quest for profits and the drive to meet surging demand for coal -- the source of about 70 percent of China's energy.