China lowers death toll in Shanxi coal mine disaster to 82

Chinese authorities have revised the death toll from a devastating gas explosion at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi province to 82, a slight decrease from initial reports that suggested at least 90 people had perished. The incident, which occurred late Friday, marks the deadliest mining accident in China since 2009, when an explosion in Heilongjiang province claimed 108 lives.

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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.

Local officials attributed the initial discrepancy in the death toll to the chaotic aftermath of the disaster and the company's unclear records regarding the number of workers underground. Guo Xiaofang, head of Qinyuan county where the mine is located, explained that the company's count of employees was imprecise, leading to the early inaccurate figure. At the time of the explosion, 247 workers were on duty. While 82 are confirmed dead, two remain unaccounted for, 128 were injured and hospitalized, and 35 escaped unharmed.

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spare no effort

The Liushenyu mine, owned by Shanxi Tongzhou Coal Coking Group, has had all four of its mines closed. Company executives have been detained as part of the ongoing investigation. President Xi Jinping has called for an "all-out effort" in rescue and treatment operations and has ordered a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident. The mine has an annual production capacity of 1.2 million tons of coal, a critical fuel source for China's power sector, which mined nearly 4.83 billion tons last year.

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completely reverse the tendency to prioritise development over safety.