Monday was China's traditional "Tomb-Sweeping Day", when people mourn their dead.
But it also became a day for national celebration, when rescuers saved 115 workers who were trapped for more than a week in a flooded coal mine in Shanxi province.
"It's a miracle," Liu Dezheng, spokesman for rescue headquarters, told reporters on Monday morning after the first nine miners were taken out shortly after midnight.
"We believe more miracles will happen."
At about noon, rescuers carried out the second batch of 106 survivors.
One of the rescued workers raised his hands from beneath his blanket as he was lifted from the pit on a stretcher, footage from State broadcaster CCTV showed.
The survivor clapped his hands and tried to reach for his rescuers in an expression of joy.
The rescued workers werecovered in blankets at the scene and some of them had their light-sensitive eyes covered as they were rushed to ambulances.
Rescuers also hugged themselves and shed tears of joy.
At about 1:40 pm on March 28, underground water gushed into the coal mine, which was under construction, where 261 people were working. Of these, 108 were the first to be lifted safely to the surface.
Rescuers have been pumping water out of the mine in the past week.
By Monday night, 38 of the workers were still trapped in the mine and more than 2,000 rescuers were trying to reach them, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Questions:
1. How many people were working in the mine when it was flooded?
2. How many are still trapped in the mine?
3. How many rescuers are still at work?
Answers:
1. 261.
2. 38.
3. More than 2,000.
(中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑)
About the broadcaster:
Renee Haines is an editor and broadcaster at China Daily. Renee has more than 15 years of experience as a newspaper editor, radio station anchor and news director, news-wire service reporter and bureau chief, magazine writer, book editor and website consultant. She came to China from the United States.