Two of Thursday's rat poisoning victims from central China's Hubei Province are still in coma, while another nine hospitalized have been out of danger, according to doctors with the local hospital.

The poisoning happened on Thursday morning at the dining hall of the tax bureau of Xiantao city has left a 30-year-old man dead.

The number of victims was confirmed to be 12. Previous report said it was 13 due to miscounting.

The victims, all employees of the tax bureau, fell ill after having noodles and soybean milk at around 7:00 AM, and were taken to the No. 1 People's Hospital of Xiantao City.

Rat poison was confirmed as the cause of accident, said doctors.

Police and the city's health department have taken food samples for examination and two medical experts from Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei have arrived in the Xiantao hospital to help treat the patients.

(Xinhua News Agency October 12, 2007)