2nd LD: Indonesian rescuers continue searching for 11 trapped miners

Indonesian rescuers on Wednesday were searching for 11 miners who were trapped 50 meters underground after a gold mine collapsed in the western Jambi province, a senior official of local disaster agency said.

Soldiers, police and local rescuers were attempting to drain waters and mud from a narrow pit to find the trapped miners, said Dalmanto, senior official at the provincial agency.

"We have not recovered the miners or their bodies. The capacity of the pump is too weak to pull out all of the mud and water inside the 50-meter-deep pit. Today, we replace it with a stronger one," he told Xinhua.

Dalmanto said the hope was diminishing of finding any survivors as they had been buried or trapped for two days.

Heavy downpours triggered the incident at the mine located in Simpang Parit village of Marangin district on Monday, according to the official.

Indonesia is rich in mineral resources, including gold, tin and nickel.

But, heavy rains often trigger landslides and flash floods in Indonesia, where millions of people live in mountainous areas or close to flood plains. Endit