48 die in mine blast

A gas explosion in a coal mine in southern China today killed 48 workers and injured two others.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the blast happened at midday at the Jianxin Coal Mine in Jiangxi province. All 48 bodies had been recovered, it said.

It was not immediately clear how many miners were working when the explosion occurred at the state-run mine in Fengcheng, about 800 miles south of Beijing.

The cause of the explosion was under investigation, Xinhua said.

The mine, with an annual capacity of 600,000 tons, has been shut down, the news agency said.

China’s coal mines are the world’s deadliest. More than 4,100 deaths have been reported so far this year in explosions, floods and cave-ins.