Beijing: At least 63 miners have died and 23 others are missing and feared dead after a gas explosion ripped through a coal mine in Eastern China, official reports said.

The death toll in the mine accident has risen to 63 and 23 were still missing at noon on May 14, the official Xinhua news agency reported from the provincial capital Hefei.

The blast occurred on May 13 afternoon, when 113 miners were working some 1,950 feet deep in the Luling coal mine. Twenty-seven have been rescued, officials said.

"The chances of their survival are not very good," one official said.

Senior officials, including the province's Governor Wang Jinshan and Vice-Governor Huang Haisong were at the scene to organise and lead the rescue work. A special team is carrying out the rescue work underground.

Following the accident, authorities have closed all coals mines in Northern Anhui province to inspect working conditions. Only those meeting proper safety standards could resume operations, officials said.

The cause of the blast is still under investigation, the report said.

Chinese mines have an appalling safety record, with thousands of deaths reported last year in explosions and floods, mostly in remote and illegal mines in the countryside.

PTI