SHANGHAI, Aug 6 -- ONE worker died after being pulled out of a flooded rail tunnel in Hubei Province yesterday, becoming the first confirmed death among 52 trapped workers, China News Service reported today.

The 49-year-old man, Chen Daoqi, was rescued about 10:30pm yesterday with two other workers, the report said.

The flooding occurred about 1am yesterday at the Yesanguan rail tunnel in Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, trapping 52 workers. The rescuers have pulled out a total of 43 workers so far and sent them to hospitals.

Rescue work continues for the remaining nine workers.

According to rescue officials, they have contacted the trapped workers. They are in a stable condition with no imminent danger to life.

Workers are using three water pumps to drain water from the tunnel. With boats, life buoys and medical instruments, rescuers are trying to extricate the trapped workers.

The tunnel is the longest of 121 tunnels along the Yiwan Railway, which links Yichang City in Hubei Province with Wanzhou in Chongqing Municipality.

Rescuers said the accident happened at a slope inside the tunnel, 240 meters away from the tunnel's entrance, where rainwater can easily go in.

Heavy rain poured into the tunnel at a rate of 40,000 to 50,000 cubic meters per hour, causing the earthwork to collapse and trapping the workers.

More than 300 officials rushed to the site after the accident. Hubei's Party chief Yu Zhengsheng and provincial governor Luo Qingquan called for all-out efforts to free the trapped workers from the flooded tunnel.

The 377-kilometer Yiwan Railway cost 16.7 billion yuan (US$2.2 billion). Its construction started in January 2004 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2008.

The double-track railway is designed for passenger trains running at speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour.

Heavy rainstorms have triggered severe flooding and mudslides in many parts of central China in the past few weeks.