At least 21 miners died when a roof collapsed in a coal mine in northern China, officials say.

Sixty-six miners were rescued after the accident on Saturday at the Lijiagou mine near the city of Shenmu in Shaanxi province.

The cause of the collapse is under investigation, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Mining accidents in China are quite common despite efforts to improve safety.

The Lijiagou mine is operated by the Baiji Mining Company, Xinhua said. No further details of the incident were available.

Last October, 21 coal miners were killed when an underground rock fall blocked a shaft in eastern Shandong province.

According to the latest figures from China's National Coal Mine Safety Administration, there were 375 deaths in coal mines in 2017, a fall of about 28% on the previous year.

In a statement last January, the bureau said the "situation of coal mine safety production is still grim" despite improvements.</s>DISASTER: At least 19 coal miners have died after an accident in northern China (Pic: DS)

Two miners who were earlier trapped are now confirmed to have died.

Another 66 miners were rescued after the cave-in at a mine in Shenmu, Shaanxi province, the city government said in a statement.

87 miners were working underground when the roof collapsed at the Lijiagou coal mine at around 4.30pm local time.

The mine is owned by Baiji Mining Co.

China state media says an investigation into the accident has been launched.</s>A total of 21 people died when a coal-mine roof collapsed in northern China on Saturday, according to local media. There were 87 miners underground at the time of the incident, 66 of whom were rescued, local authorities report. The mine is located in the Shaanxi province in the heart of the country’s coalmining belt. Officials will carry out inspections at nearby facilities following the collapse, the Xinhua News Agency reported. The Chinese coal industry is infamous for being among the deadliest in the world. According to the country’s coal mine safety administration, 375 coal-mine-related deaths were reported in 2017, which represented a 28.7-percent decrease from the previous year.</s>Coal mine collapses in northern China, killing at least 21

BEIJING (AP) — Twenty-one coal miners were killed when a mine collapsed in northern China, state media reported Sunday.

The disaster occurred Saturday in Shenmu in Shaanxi province in the heart of the country's coal-mining belt, according to state TV and the Xinhua News Agency.

Sixty-six other miners were rescued, the city government said in a statement.

The number of fatalities reported in cave-ins, explosions and other disasters in Chinese coal mines has fallen sharply over the past decade but the industry still is the world's deadliest.</s>Jan. 13 (UPI) -- The roof of a coal mine in China collapsed, killing 21 people, state media reported.

The accident occurred at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Baiji Mining Co. Ltd.'s Lijiagou coal mine in the city of Shenmu, acording to Xinhua.

When the roof collapsed, 87 people were working underground. Nineteen were found dead and two others, initially thought to be missing, died, state broadcaster CCTV reported, according to the South China Morning Post.

A large number of rescue vehicles and personnel remained at the site Sunday.

An investigation into the cause of the accident is underway.

Lijiagou mine received approval in 2016 to produce 900,000 tons of coal a year. But in 2017, its owner - Baiji Mining Company was ordered by the government to suspend operations while it "improved safety standards to prevent serious accidents."

That year, 375 people died in coal mining accidents, according to figures from the National Coal Mine Safety Administration. That was 29 percent lower than 2016.

Last year, the bureau investigated 3,071 accidents, which resulted in 74 mines being ordered to close, 36 told to halt operations and more than $6 million in fines being issued, Xinhua said.

Last October, a cave-in at a mine in eastern Shandong province milled 21.

Two months later, seven miners died and three were injured in a mining accident in Chongqing.</s>In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, ambulance vehicles and rescuers gather at the Lijiagou coal mine of the Baiji Mining Co., Ltd. in Shenmu City, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019. Twenty-one coal miners were killed when a mine collapsed in northern China, state media reported Sunday. (Li Yibo/Xinhua via AP)

BEIJING (AP) — Twenty-one coal miners were killed when a mine collapsed in northern China, state media reported Sunday.

The disaster occurred Saturday in Shenmu in Shaanxi province in the heart of the country's coal-mining belt, according to state TV and the Xinhua News Agency.

Sixty-six other miners were rescued, the city government said in a statement.

The number of fatalities reported in cave-ins, explosions and other disasters in Chinese coal mines has fallen sharply over the past decade, but the industry still is the world's deadliest.</s>Twenty-one people have been killed after a roof collapsed at a coalmine in northern China.

A total of 87 people were working underground in the mine in Shaanxi province at the time of the accident at around 4:30pm on Saturday, the official news agency Xinhua reported.

It was initially reported that 19 miners had died and rescuers were searching for two remaining trapped miners. But the pair had been found dead on Sunday morning, Xinhua reported. Another 66 miners were safely evacuated from the mine in Shenmu city.

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The cause of the accident at the Lijiagou coal mine of the Baiji Mining Company is being investigated.</s>This Chinese flag used in the Opening Ceremony in Rio has caused an international flap.

BEIJING (AP) — Twenty-one coal miners were killed when a mine collapsed in northern China, state media reported Sunday.

The disaster occurred Saturday in Shenmu in Shaanxi province in the heart of the country’s coal-mining belt, according to state TV and the Xinhua News Agency.

Sixty-six other miners were rescued, the city government said in a statement.

The number of fatalities reported in cave-ins, explosions and other disasters in Chinese coal mines has fallen sharply over the past decade, but the industry still is the world’s deadliest.</s>The death toll in a coal mine roof collapse in northern China has risen to 21 after rescuers found two more miners dead on Sunday, state media reported.

A total of 87 people were working underground in the Lijiagou coal mine at the time of the accident on Saturday afternoon, according to official news agency Xinhua, citing local authorities.

The disaster occurred Saturday in Shenmu in northwest Shaanxi province in the heart of the country's coal-mining belt.

Rescuers had been searching for two remaining trapped miners but found them dead Sunday morning, Xinhua reported. Another 66 miners were safely evacuated from the mine.

The cause of the accident at the site, run by privately owned Baiji Mining, is still under investigation.

Private coal mines in China typically take fewer safety precautions than larger state-owned mines.

Information about the accident cannot be disclosed, a driver at the company said who answered Baiji's registered phone number.

The mine is a small scale operation, he said, declining to give his name.

Deadly mining accidents are common in China, where the industry has a poor safety record despite efforts to improve coal production conditions and crack down on illegal mines.

In December last year, seven miners were killed and three others injured in an accident at a coal mine in China's southwest.

In October, 21 miners died in eastern Shandong province after pressure inside a mine caused rocks to fracture and break, blocking the tunnel and trapping workers. Only one miner was rescued alive.

According to China's National Coal Mine Safety Administration, the country saw 375 coal mining related deaths in 2017, down 28.7 percent year-on-year.

But despite improvements, "the situation of coal mine safety production is still grim," the bureau said in a statement following a coal mine safety conference last January.</s>Coal mine collapses in northern China, killing at least 19

BEIJING (AP) — At least 19 miners were killed when a coal mine collapsed in northern China, the government said Sunday.

Rescuers were looking for two miners who still are missing following the disaster Saturday in the northern city of Shenmu in Shaanxi province, the city government said in a statement.

Another 66 miners were rescued, the statement said.

The number of fatalities reported in cave-ins, explosions and other disasters in Chinese coal mines has fallen sharply over the past decade but the industry still is the world's deadliest.
At least 21 miners die after a roof collapses in a coal mine in Shenmu, China.