Hanoi  - At least four Vietnamese men, including a father and son, were killed in a mining accident at a stone quarry in southern Vietnam, an official said Monday.

Phan Viet Tan, 58; his son Phan Viet Hai Dang, 28; and two other miners were killed Sunday in the Tho Son commune in Kien Giang province, 250 kilometers south-west of Ho Chi Minh City, said Nguyen Van Kiet, a local police officer.

According to Kiet, the four were quarrying stones at the foot of a mountain when they were buried under hundreds of tons of stone and earth.

"There were dozens of other miners working there at the time of the accident, but they were quick enough to escape," Kiet said.

Local authorities recovered the bodies of Tan and his son Monday. They were still searching for Ngo Van Ty, 41, and Nguyen Van Moi, 33, but Kiet said they were believed to be dead.

Kiet said police were investigating the cause of the accident, adding that heavy rain in recent days might have loosened the earth and stones.

Last year, mining accidents killed at least 52 people in Vietnam. (dpa)