The Office of the Work Safety Commission under China's State Council is supervising an investigation into an accident that killed 16 people in a coal mine in Panzhou city, Guizhou province on Sunday, the Ministry of Emergency Management said.

The local government set up an on-site command center to coordinate the rescue efforts.

Guizhou Daily reported that preliminary investigations suggest that the accident was caused by a fire in the transport conveyor belt. The temperature and gas levels in the affected area have returned to normal.