At least 70 miners were killed and 26 others were trapped on Thursday when a gas blast ripped through a coal mine in north Shanxi Province in one of the major colliery accidents in China’s deadliest mining industry, officials said.

Officials said 70 bodies had been recovered as rescuers looked for survivours in the village-run Xinyao pit in Hongtong County of Linfen.

Fifteen workers were either rescued or they escaped the blast which initial probe showed was caused by illegal mining activity in an unauthorised coal seam, official Xinhua news agency said. The exact number of miners trapped is not known yet, the report said.

The legal representative and head of the mine have been detained by the police. The mine licenses have been sealed and bank accounts frozen, it said.

The bodies of the victims were being identified and efforts were on to know the cause of the blast.

The coal mining industry in China is considered the deadliest with accidents being frequent. From January to October this year, 3,069 deaths in 1,920 cases have been reported.

Authorities, however, said the number of deaths was less by 20.2 per cent and the cases by 19 per cent from the same period last year.

Most of the accidents are blamed on flouting of safety norms by owners. China is the world’s largest coal producer.

China has banned new small coal mines with an annual capacity  below 300,000 tons in a move to improve the safety record of its mining industry.