At least 22 miners remain trapped in northeast and east China following three separate accidents at coal mines over the weekend, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Saturday, a fire broke out a coal mine in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, leaving eleven out of 13 people inside the mine. Local authorities reported about the accident a day later adding that the mine operated illegally.

Another mine in the same province was flooded trapping six miners, while the destiny of five more miners remains unclear after a ceiling collapse at a coal mine in east China's Shandong Province.

The coal industry in energy-hungry China is one of the most dangerous in the world due to poor work safety standards and intensive work schedules. Hundreds of lives are lost annually in accidents at coal mines in the country.