Shanxi Mine Disaster: UK Media Reports Rising Public Anger in China with Hundreds of Thousands of Online Posts

A gas explosion at the Liushenyu coal mine in Qinyuan County, Shanxi Province, China, on the 22nd has resulted in at least 82 deaths, marking the deadliest mining disaster in China in 17 years. The BBC Chinese service reported that as rescue efforts progress, public anger over the major accident is intensifying, with hundreds of thousands of related posts and comments appearing online. The report notes that many Chinese citizens are reminded of the 2000s, a period of frequent and deadly mining accidents. Issues such as inadequate safety management, discrepancies between mine blueprints submitted to authorities and actual conditions, and the fact that the number of workers in the mine during the accident was double the registered figure have become focal points of criticism. The Tongzhou Group, which owns the Liushenyu mine, was administratively penalized twice in 2025 for safety violations and was listed by the National Mine Safety Administration in 2024 as a 'coal mine with major hidden dangers.'