Three miners were confirmed dead and two were missing after a coal mine flooded in southwest China's Sichuan Province, a local official said Thursday.

The colliery in Xintai Town, Kaijiang County was flooded near midday Thursday, said Yang Juan, the county's Communist Party chief.

Rescuers are still searching for the missing.

The cause of the licensed colliery is being investigated.

(Xinhua News Agency January 11, 2008)