At least 90 people have died in a coal mine explosion in northern China, according to state media.
The gas blast struck the Liushenyu Coal Mine operated by the Tongzhou Group in Shanxi province, reports BBC.
Rescue teams have rushed hundreds of personnel to the site. State media footage showed paramedics carrying stretchers while ambulances stood by.
More than 100 injured people have been admitted to hospital, while search-and-rescue operations continue.
The explosion occurred at 19:29 local time on Friday (11:29 GMT), when 247 workers were reportedly on duty inside the mine.
Following the tragedy, Chinese President Xi Jinping instructed authorities to make every effort to treat the injured and continue searching for survivors without delay.
He also ordered a full investigation into the cause of the disaster and called for those responsible to be held accountable.
According to state media, officials managing the coal mine have been detained. The exact cause of the gas explosion has not yet been confirmed, although reports indicated that carbon monoxide levels in the mine were found to have “exceeded limits”.
China’s Ministry of Emergency Management has deployed 345 rescue personnel from six specialist teams to assist with ongoing operations.
Shanxi province, one of China’s less developed regions, is widely regarded as the country’s coal-mining hub.
In the early 2000s, fatal accidents were frequent in China’s coal industry. Although safety regulations have tightened in recent years, incidents still occur.
In 2023, 53 people were killed when a collapse hit an open-pit coal mine in Inner Mongolia.
In 2009, an explosion at a mine in Heilongjiang province in the north-east killed more than 100 people.
