Rescuers finallysucceeded Tuesday night in pulling an iron miner whose legs had been pinned by rocks from a collapsed shaft in east China's Anhui Province, local authorities said.

The trapped miner, Zheng Yujie, was very weak and sent to a local hospital immediately.

One of his ribs was broken and he had kidney problems, doctors said.

Zheng's legs were stuck at the very beginning when the iron mine collapsed Saturday morning, according to Hu Dexiang, the miner who was the first among the eight trapped to be rescued Monday afternoon.

Zheng had been offered physiological salt solution and milk forsurvival underground since he was discovered at about 2:00 PM Monday, rescuers said.

Too much silt underground had hampered the rescue operation, rescuers said.

To date, five miners, including a female, out of the eight trapped had been pulled out alive from the collapsed shaft and were rushed to a local hospital.

However, the remaining three had been confirmed dead underground, according to Cheng Chuanru, director of the Anhui Provincial Administration for Work Safety.

One of the bodies has been lifted above ground.

The first survivor, Hu Dexiang, was rescued at 5:41 PM Mondayafter being trapped in the Dalongshan Iron Mine in the city of Anqing for more than 60 hours. He was then sent to the Anqing CityHospital.

Eight miners were trapped underground at a depth of 130 meters after the mine in the Dalongshan Township collapsed at 4:50 AM Saturday. Dust and water capped the ventilation hole and the exit after the tragedy, making it impossible for the miners to escape.

More than 1,000 rescuers have pitched in the rescue operation over the past few days.

The Dalongshan Iron Mine was founded in 1992 as a township-run company but was privatized in 1999. It employed 15 people and produced 15,000 tons of iron ore a year.

In the wake of the tragedy, the city government of Anqing ordered all local mines to halt production for a safety overhaul.

(Xinhua News Agency May 17, 2006)