The blast struck the Liushenyu mine shaft on Friday while 247 workers were underground, making it China’s deadliest mining accident since 2009. Authorities said hundreds of rescuers, medical personnel and emergency specialists have been deployed to the site as efforts continue to locate the remaining missing workers.

State media reported that 128 injured miners had been transported to hospitals by Saturday evening, while rescue crews worked around the clock in hazardous underground conditions. Teams reportedly deployed robotic equipment to assess conditions inside the shaft and assist in the search operation.

Police sealed off access roads leading to the mine as emergency operations intensified. Rescue personnel were seen rotating in shifts to descend into the damaged shaft in hopes of finding survivors.

Chinese authorities have launched a formal investigation into the disaster. Preliminary findings indicate that the mine operator, identified as Shanxi Tongzhou Group, committed what officials described as serious legal and safety violations.

According to authorities, more than half of the workers underground at the time of the explosion had not been properly registered before entering the mine. Regulations require miners to complete facial-recognition verification or carry location-tracking identification devices before descending into operational shafts.

Officials said an individual responsible for the company has been taken into custody under Chinese law as investigators examine potential breaches of safety protocols and operational regulations.

The disaster prompted intervention by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, which ordered nationwide inspections and stricter enforcement measures targeting illegal mining activities, falsification of safety records, inaccurate worker headcounts and unauthorized contracting practices.

Survivor Wang Yong told state broadcaster CCTV that he smelled sulfur moments before the explosion. He said a cloud of smoke rapidly spread through the mine, causing panic among workers attempting to escape. Wang recounted seeing colleagues overcome by fumes before losing consciousness and later regaining awareness more than an hour afterward.

International leaders offered condolences following the accident. Sanae Takaichi expressed hope for the rescue of remaining workers, while Narendra Modi extended sympathies to affected families. Lai Ching-te said Taiwan was prepared to provide humanitarian assistance if needed.

The explosion occurred in Shanxi, the heart of China’s coal industry and one of the country’s largest coal-producing regions. Despite improvements in mine safety standards over recent decades, fatal accidents continue to occur as authorities grapple with enforcement challenges in an industry that remains critical to China’s energy supply.

The catastrophe is the deadliest mining disaster in China since a 2009 explosion in Heilongjiang killed 108 miners. It also surpasses the toll of a 2023 open-pit mine collapse in Inner Mongolia that claimed 53 lives.
China remains the world’s largest consumer of coal and the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, even as it continues to expand renewable energy generation capacity at a record pace.