Rescue efforts continue as Shanxi coal mine blast leaves 82 dead, 2 missing

AFP journalists saw relatives anxiously waiting by a checkpoint blocking the road leading to the mine on Sunday, hoping for news of their loved ones.

President Lee Jae Myung on Sunday expressed condolences over a deadly gas explosion at a coal mine in China's Shanxi province, voicing hope for a swift recovery from the tragedy.

His 47-year-old sibling, a father of three, was working in the Liushenyu shaft in northern China's Shanxi province on Friday when a catastrophic gas explosion ripped through the mine, killing at least 82 people.

An Associated Press reporter witnessed police and security guarding the entrance to the mining facility located in Qinyuan county in the city of Changzhi as emergency vehicles were on site.