Twelve workers are dead after a fire broke out at a coalmine in China's eastern Jiangxi Province.

Early investigations into the accident at the Miaoshang Coal Mine in Xinyu City point to a short circuit of underground cables.

Rescuers say 14 miners were working underground when the fire started. Only two of the workers managed to escape.

A wooden supporting structure in the mine caught fire causing harmful gases and a tunnel collapse.

Police are looking for the mine head and other executives who fled after the accident.

Lax safety standards and strong demand for resources have made China's mines the most dangerous in the world.

Last Tuesday 25 people died in another coalmine fire in central China's Hunan Province.