Beijing, May 23 (QNA) - The death toll from a devastating gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China's Shanxi Province has risen to 90, state media reported Saturday. Rescue teams continue an intensive search for nine workers who remain missing underground.

The blast occurred at 7:29 p.m. local time on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Qinyuan County, located in the city of Changzhi.

According to the state news agency Xinhua, a total of 247 miners were underground when the explosion took place. By Saturday morning, emergency personnel had successfully evacuated 148 survivors, though many are being treated for toxic carbon monoxide inhalation.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered "all-out efforts" to rescue the remaining trapped personnel and treat the injured. President Xi also demanded a comprehensive investigation into the disaster, instructing local authorities to hold those responsible strictly accountable under the law.

In an immediate response to the tragedy, law enforcement officials have detained executives from the Shanxi Tongzhou Group Liushenyu Coal Industry, the company operating the facility. Preliminary reports indicate that underground carbon monoxide sensors had triggered an alarm just prior to the explosion, signaling that toxic gas levels had severely exceeded safety limits.

The incident marks China's deadliest mining disaster in over a decade. While the country has significantly tightened industry regulations and reduced mining fatalities since the early 2000s, the Shanxi region remains under intense scrutiny as the country's primary coal-producing hub. (QNA)