A mining accident in southwest China has claimed the lives of seven workers, with one other person still trapped, according to state media reports.

The incident occurred on Wednesday morning at a coal mine in the city of Leshan, Sichuan province, as workers were closing a ventilation shaft.

State broadcaster CCTV reported that the accident initially trapped eight people.

By 2:00 pm local time, seven of the trapped workers were found dead, while rescue efforts continued to locate the remaining individual. The cause of the accident has not yet been disclosed.

Mine safety has been an ongoing concern in China, despite improvements in recent decades and increased media coverage of major incidents.

Accidents still frequently occur, especially at smaller, less regulated mining operations, where safety protocols are often lax.

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In a notable incident last year, a slope collapse at an open-pit coal mine in Inner Mongolia resulted in the deaths or disappearance of 53 people, according to official reports.

The latest tragedy in Sichuan underscores the persistent challenges faced by China’s mining industry in ensuring the wellbeing of workers.

Authorities have vowed to strengthen oversight and enforcement of safety measures to prevent such devastating accidents from occurring in the future.