At least 82 people died in a gas explosion at the Liushenyu coal mine in northern China’s Changzhi city, AFP reported on Saturday.A major rescue operation was launched after hundreds of workers were trapped underground following an explosion in northern China, according to the South China Morning Post.The explosion occurred on Friday in Qianyuan county, about 520 kilometers southwest of Beijing, with the mine reportedly issuing a carbon monoxide warning soon after. 247 workers were underground at the time of the explosion. Authorities have not yet clarified whether additional miners are trapped.Chinese President Xi Jinping instructed rescue workers to make “every possible effort” to locate the missing workers and ensure that the consequences were “properly handled”. He also called for strict accountability, saying that those responsible for the accident should be held accountable.Xi said, “All sectors and departments should learn from the lessons of the accident, be vigilant about workplace safety, thoroughly investigate, correct all kinds of risks and hidden dangers, and prevent and curb the occurrence of major and serious accidents.”Xi additionally warned about the dangers of seasonal weather, noting that China is entering its rainy season and urged authorities to strengthen flood prevention measures.The warning comes days after heavy rains lashed Shimen county in Hunan province, killing at least seven people and affecting more than 100,000 residents. Local officials said 14 people were missing.Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang echoed Xi’s comments, and ordered officials to leave no stone unturned in the search for the missing miners. He also demanded a prompt investigation into the cause of the blast and punishment of those responsible.Li instructed the Workplace Safety Office of the State Council to remind local administrations of their duty to investigate industrial accidents and “resolutely” prevent future disasters.The death toll from the blast rapidly increased from 8 to 82 overnight. “Journalists at the site of the gas explosion at the Liuchenyu coal mine have learned that more than 82 people have lost their lives in the accident,” state broadcaster CCTV said, adding that rescue operations were still ongoing.The explosion occurred at around 7:30 pm local time on Friday in a coal mine in Shanxi province in northern China.The exact cause of the explosion is still under investigation.Shanxi is China’s main coal-producing province and is larger than Greece. About 34 million people live there. Last year, miners in the province extracted about 1.3 billion tons of coal, about one-third of China’s total coal production.