A gas explosion at the Liushenyu coal mine in Qinyuan county, Shanxi province, has killed at least 82 people, making it China's deadliest mining accident since 2009. The blast occurred on Friday evening at around 7:30 pm local time, while 247 workers were underground at the mine, which is operated by the Tongzhou Group. Rescue operations remain ongoing, with more than 750 emergency and medical personnel dispatched to the site, and two people are still reported missing.
Authorities were first alerted after an underground carbon monoxide sensor triggered an alarm. Carbon monoxide, a highly toxic and odourless gas, is a common hazard in coal mine explosions. At least 123 people were hospitalised, four of them in critical or severe condition. One survivor, Wang Yong, described seeing a puff of smoke, smelling sulphur, and watching colleagues choke before he lost consciousness — only to wake roughly an hour later and help others find their way out. Preliminary findings from Chinese authorities indicate the mine's operator committed "serious illegal violations", and at least one company official has been placed under legal control pending investigation.
President Xi Jinping called on emergency services to "spare no effort" in rescuing the missing and treating the injured, and ordered a full investigation into both the cause of the accident and who bears responsibility. He also used the disaster as an occasion to issue a broader warning, urging all regions and departments to "remain constantly vigilant regarding workplace safety" and to prevent future catastrophic accidents. Premier Li Qiang echoed these instructions, calling for the timely and accurate release of information and rigorous accountability.
The accident carries particular weight given the mine's history. In 2024, Liushenyu was among 1,128 mines flagged by China's national mine safety administration for "severe safety hazards", with regulators specifically raising concerns about high gas levels at the site. Shanxi, one of China's poorer inland provinces and the heart of its coal industry — accounting for nearly a third of national raw coal output — has long been associated with mining risks.
China has made significant strides in reducing coal mine fatalities since the early 2000s through tighter regulations and improved safety practices, but deadly accidents continue to occur. The last comparable disaster was a 2009 explosion in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang that killed more than 100 people. Friday's blast is a stark reminder that, despite regulatory progress, the human cost of China's coal dependence remains high.