At least thirty-one miners have been killed and 43 injured when explosions ripped through two separate coal mines in the same city in northern China's Heilongjiang province.
The news came on the same day that Beijing announced the country will close thousands of small coal mines this year in an attempt to reduce the death toll among workers in the industry.
The more serious of the two accidents occurred when 73 people were inside the Donghai Mine in Jixi city Monday, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
An employee at the mine confirmed that 24 people had died and 39 were injured when the mine shaft collapsed. He said the remaining 10 workers escaped without injuries.
The large mine produces one million tonnes of coal per year and is one of the biggest subsidiaries of the Jixi Mining Industry Group.
The Chinese government generally focuses safety crackdowns on small mines, but the latest accident demonstrates how poor working standards appear endemic throughout the industry.
On Monday, several consecutive gas explosions ripped through that section of the mine, causing other shafts - where miners were still working - to collapse.
Two of those who died were rescue workers who went down to the mine after the first explosion, Xinhua said.
In the other accident in Jixi city later on Monday, seven miners were killed by a gas explosion at a privately-owned mine in Didao district, a local hospital official said.
In a separate report on Wednesday, Xinhua had quoted central mining safety officials saying around 30 percent of small coal mines currently operating would be targeted during a shutdown this year, reducing the total number to 15,000.
Government-led drives to hold officials responsible for mining deaths have also led to many not reporting accidents for fear of punishment, rights groups say.
Many miners are migrant workers, and if they die owners simply bury them and pay off the relatives without reporting the accidents, one group said last year.
AFP