Official news agency Xinhua reported that the mine was operated by Fushun Mining Group, a state-owned company in Fushun, an industrial city east of the provincial capital Shenyang.

The mine manager at the site told reporters that the flood was followed by a gas leak and that there were still risks of further flooding, gas leaks or ceiling collapse.

The mine is more than 100 years old, employs 7200 people and produces 3.35 million tons a year, Xinhua reported.

More than 350 people have died in coal mine accidents in China so far this year, according to the State Administration of Work Safety.