Families of all the 171 victims in a colliery blast in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province have signed compensation agreements with the mine owner as of Monday.

The bodies of the victims have been cremated, sources from rescue headquarters told Xinhua Tuesday.

A total of 169 miners were trapped and killed in the blast late last month in Qitaihe, Heilongjiang. The blast also killed another two working on the ground. Seventy-three miners managed to escape the blast.

The families of each victim is expected to receive at least 200,000 yuan (US$24,691) in compensation.

(Xinhua News Agency December 13, 2005)