By DAN FROSCH and JENNIFER LEE
The New York Times

HUNTINGTON, Utah, Aug. 16 - Three rescue workers were killed and six others were injured last night when a seismic jolt caused a mine accident during an effort to reach six men who have been trapped at the Crandall Canyon Mine since Aug. 6, mining officials said.

The jolt happened about 6:30 p.m., according to the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration.

Officials said the surviving workers suffered injuries including cuts and bruises and chest injuries.

At least 130 rescue workers are involved in the rescue operation, which has stretched 11 days. Though it is unclear how many were working at the time of the accident, all other workers had been evacuated and accounted for last night, said Tammy Kikuchi, a spokeswoman for the Utah Department of Natural Resources. Two of the injured men worked for the federal mine safety agency.

“It’s a devastating to blow to what was already a tragic situation,” said Mayor Joe Piccolo of Price, Utah, who said his father was killed in a mining accident 50 years ago.

A flurry of ambulances and helicopters - some from as far as 140 miles away in Salt Lake City - descended on Crandall Canyon. As one ambulance left, emergency medical technicians could be seen administering aid to a worker.

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., who was out of state at the time of the accident, rushed to Castleview Hospital in Price, about 25 miles from the mine, where six of the workers were originally taken and one of them died. Two workers were flown to the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, which has a statewide trauma center, and two to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, where one was declared dead.

A spokesman for the federal mining agency said it was unclear whether rescue operations would resume Friday.

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