90 dead in Shanxi coal mine disaster; Chinese Vice Premier orders thorough investigation

A gas explosion occurred at the Liushenyu Coal Mine in Qinyuan County, Shanxi Province, last night, resulting in 90 deaths as of 2:00 PM. Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing visited the site today and stated that the State Council's accident investigation team must conduct a "rigorous and uncompromising" investigation to clarify the cause of the accident and the responsibilities of relevant departments, and to punish them strictly in accordance with the law. Zhang also instructed all regions to comprehensively inspect the implementation of mine safety, crack down on illegal activities, and strictly investigate and punish issues such as hidden mining faces, falsified safety monitoring, unclear numbers of underground workers, and illegal subcontracting. The State Council's Work Safety Committee and local authorities were ordered to immediately deploy inspections and rectifications of safety hazards in key industries such as coal mines and hazardous chemicals, enforce strict regulations, and resolutely punish illegal acts in production safety. According to Xinhua News Agency, Zhang led officials from relevant departments to the site in Changzhi City, Shanxi, on the 23rd to guide emergency response efforts, conveying instructions from General Secretary Xi Jinping and requirements from Premier Li Qiang. He held a meeting at the command center and made the aforementioned statements. Zhang also demanded that Shanxi and all regions remain vigilant about production safety, implement safety responsibilities and measures in detail, and "resolutely prevent and curb the occurrence of major accidents." He instructed that professional forces be mobilized for scientific search and rescue to avoid secondary casualties. He also ordered the verification of the number of missing persons to ensure no one is left behind, the organization of high-level medical experts to treat the injured to reduce disabilities, and the careful handling of aftermath and support work, while releasing information in a timely and accurate manner to address public concerns.