5 January 2016, 03:22 GMT
BEIJING (Sputnik) – At least 19 people were killed in a coal mine accident in China’s northern Shanxi province on Thursday, local media report.
The mine belongs to the Datong Coal Mine Group, the Xinhua news agency said.
According to CCTV, there were a total of 129 people in the mine at the time of the accident, with 110 of them having survived.
The probable cause of the accident was a major collapse in a mined-out area, Xinhua said citing a preliminary analysis.
Earlier this month, a gas leak at a coal mine in China’s northeastern Jilin province led to the death of 12 workers.
China’s coal mine industry is one of the most dangerous in the world. The country’s authorities have announced plans of closing scores of mines across China in order to reduce fatal incidents.
