Chinese authorities have revised the death toll from a coal mine gas explosion in northern Shanxi province to 82, down from an initially reported figure of at least 90.
The explosion occurred late Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi, one of China's largest coal-producing regions. Despite the lower figure, the disaster remains the country's deadliest mining accident since 2009, when a gas explosion at the Xinxing mine in Heilongjiang province killed 108 people.
Officials said the earlier casualty figure was reported in error amid confusion following the blast. Guo Xiaofang, head of Qinyuan county, where the mine is located, said at a press conference: "After the incident, the scene was chaotic, the company's count of the number of workers was not clear, which led to the initial inaccurate number."
Authorities said 247 workers were underground when the explosion occurred. Two people remained missing as of Saturday, while 128 workers were hospitalized with injuries. Another 35 workers escaped unharmed.
The Liushenyu mine is operated by Shanxi Tongzhou Coal Coking Group. Local officials said all four mines owned by the company have been shut down and several executives have been detained pending an investigation.
President Xi Jinping ordered authorities to make every effort to treat the injured, continue search and rescue operations, and determine the cause of the accident, according to state news agency Xinhua. China's state-run People's Daily on Sunday called for stronger workplace safety measures following the disaster, urging officials to reverse what it described as a tendency to prioritize development over safety.
The Liushenyu mine has an annual production capacity of 1.2 million metric tons of coal. China produced approximately 4.83 billion metric tons of coal last year, with the fuel continuing to serve as the backbone of the country's power generation system.
The accident is likely to intensify scrutiny of safety practices in China's mining sector, one of the world's largest sources of coal production.
