China mine explosion kills 90 after Shanxi gas blast

At least 90 people were killed after a gas explosion ripped through the Liushenyu coal mine in Qinyuan county, in northern China’s Shanxi province, late on Friday, Reuters reported. Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered an all-out rescue effort and an investigation as crews searched the site and officials worked to account for the dead and missing.

The toll had climbed to 90 by Saturday, with nine people still missing, state media cited by Reuters said. Reuters reported that 247 workers were underground when the explosion hit. The jump in the casualty count quickly drew in China’s top leadership and put pressure on local officials to explain how so many miners were caught in one blast.

By Saturday, the operation had largely become a recovery mission. Officials were still searching for the nine missing workers, but attention was already turning to how gas built up in the mine and how one explosion caused so many deaths.

Al Jazeera reported that Premier Li Qiang also called for every effort to save those still trapped and treat the injured. The broadcaster said emergency crews were still working through the mine as officials tried to establish how the blast spread and why so many workers were underground when it erupted. Rescue teams remained at the site into Saturday as the scale of the disaster became clearer.

In a statement carried by Reuters, Xi said rescuers should “spare no effort” and that authorities should hold those responsible to account. His order put the response on two tracks from the outset: continue the search and prepare a formal inquiry into the mine’s safety controls and management.

“learn from the lessons of the accident, remain vigilant regarding workplace safety, thoroughly investigate, rectify all types of risks and hidden dangers”
Xi Jinping, via Al Jazeera

Shanxi’s role in China’s coal industry made the blast especially sensitive. Al Jazeera reported that the province produced more than 1 billion tonnes of coal last year. A disaster there is likely to bring renewed scrutiny to safety enforcement in a sector that remains central to China’s power supply.

Why Shanxi matters

Mine safety now sits at the centre of the official response. Xi’s direct intervention signalled that Beijing saw the blast as more than a local workplace disaster. With 90 people reported dead and nine still missing, authorities face pressure to show that the search was exhaustive and that inspectors will examine gas controls, oversight and management decisions at the mine.

Neither Reuters nor Al Jazeera reported a confirmed cause on Saturday. Investigators still have to determine how gas accumulated inside the mine, whether monitoring systems detected the danger in time and what escape options workers had once the explosion began. Those findings will shape the official inquiry and determine whether Beijing’s call for accountability leads to disciplinary action, criminal charges or a wider safety campaign.

By late Saturday, the basic facts were unchanged. Ninety people were reported dead, nine were still missing and the search was continuing. In one of China’s main coal-producing provinces, the Liushenyu blast has become both a mass-casualty disaster and a political test for the officials overseeing mine safety.