A gas explosion at a coal mine in China’s northern Shanxi province killed at least 82 people, state media reported Saturday, revising down from an earlier death toll of at least 90, in the country's biggest mining disaster in more than 15 years.
A gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China has killed 82 people, state media reported on Saturday, the country's biggest mining disaster in 17 years.
A total of 247 workers were underground at the time of the blast, which occurred at 7:29pm (1129 GMT) on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi province, according to state news agency Xinhua.
State media had earlier reported at least 90 people had died and said 123 others had been sent to hospital for treatment, four of whom were in critical or severe condition, state broadcaster CCTV said.
Of those sent for treatment, 33 had returned home as of 2pm on Saturday, it added.
A total of 755 emergency and medical personnel were dispatched to the site, with rescue efforts still ongoing Saturday afternoon, CCTV said.
Friday's explosion was the worst mining disaster in China since 2009, when 108 people were killed in a mine blast in northeast Heilongjiang province.
Sulphur smell
Survivor and injured miner Wang Yong told CCTV there was a "puff of smoke" and he smelled sulphur.
He recalled seeing people choked by the smoke before he fainted.
"I lay down for about an hour and woke up by myself. I called the people next to me and got out of the mine together," Wang said, according to CCTV.
Helmeted rescuers were carrying stretchers at the site, with ambulances visible in the background, video by CCTV showed.
President Xi Jinping urged "all-out efforts" to treat the injured and called for thorough investigations into the incident, according to Xinhua.
China's government launched an "uncompromising" investigation into the explosion, vowing to severely punish those responsible, and ordered a nationwide crackdown on illegal mining activities, Xinhua said Saturday evening.
"The State Council's accident investigation team will conduct a rigorous and uncompromising investigation," Xinhua said.
"Those found responsible will be severely punished in accordance with laws and regulations".
"All regions and relevant authorities are required to... launch tough crackdowns on illegal and unlawful activities", including the falsification of safety data, unclear headcounts of underground workers and illegal contracting, it added.
A person "responsible for" the company involved in the explosion has been "placed under control in accordance with the law", Xinhua said.
State media initially reported four deaths and dozens trapped after levels of carbon monoxide – a highly toxic, odourless gas – in the mine were found to have "exceeded limits".
Some of those stuck underground were in "critical condition", that report said.
The death toll then jumped sharply as the morning wore on.
Lax safety protocols
Shanxi, one of China's poorer provinces, is the centre of the country's coal-mining.
Mine safety in China has improved in recent decades, but accidents still occur in an industry where safety protocols are often lax and regulations vague.
In 2023, a collapse at an open-pit coal mine in the northern Inner Mongolia region killed 53 people.
China is the world's top consumer of coal and the largest greenhouse gas emitter, despite installing renewable energy capacity at record speed.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
