The mud flooding occurred around noon on Saturday while 21 people were working underground in the coal mine in Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China's Qinghai Province. The deputy head of Haibei Prefecture said at a press conference early Sunday morning that the provincial mine safety administration ordered the coal mine to suspend production and rectify irregularities on August 2.

Rescue operations are underway. Follow CGTN reporter Cen Ziyuan to find out more.