At least 82 people died this Friday in a gas explosion that occurred at the Liushenyu mine, in the Chinese province of Shanxi (center), as reported by Chinese state media.
The accident occurred at 7:29 p.m. local time this Friday at that farm located in the Qinyuan district, where 247 people worked at the time of the accident and where rescue efforts continue, according to the official agency Xinhua.
The death toll increased throughout the day: in a first report released on Saturday morning, the authorities had reported 8 deaths, 201 people evacuated alive and 38 trapped underground, before raising the number of fatalities first to “more than 50” and then to 82.
Subsequently, state television CCTV indicated that, in addition to the 82 deaths, other 9 people were still missing.
The authorities have not yet detailed the specific circumstances under which the explosion occurred or the condition of the people who were still not located, although they have indicated that rescue efforts were still underway.
In parallel, Xinhua has indicated that a person responsible for the company that owns the mine had been left “under the control of the authorities”, in a movement that points to the beginning of the purge of possible responsibilities for the incident.
After learning of the accident, the Chinese president, Xi Jinpinghas asked to intensify search tasks, care for the injured, investigate the causes of the event and demand accountability.
For his part, the deputy prime minister Zhang Guoqing has traveled to the scene to supervise the rescue efforts and post-accident management.
Coal mines, a material with which China generates around 60% of its energy, continue to register high accident rates, although in recent years the number of fatal accidents has been significantly reduced.
The Chinese mining sector recorded more than 3,000 deaths between 2018 and 2023, a figure that however represented a decrease of 53.6% compared to the previous five years, according to official data.
