SIXTEEN people have been confirmed dead in a coal-mine fire in the city of Panzhou, Southwest China’s Guizhou Province, on Sunday morning, local authorities said.

The fire occurred around 8:10 a.m. at the Shanjiaoshu Coal Mine in Panguan Town, according to the local government.

Initial investigations suggest that the 16 people were trapped after a conveyor belt caught fire. The blaze has been extinguished, and temperatures have returned to normal at the site of the fire, officials said.

(Xinhua)