TAIYUAN - Mining operations of China National Coal Group Corp. (ChinaCoal) in north Shaanxi province were ordered suspended after eight miners were confirmed dead in a colliery flooding at one of the company's subsidiaries.

The decision came at a provincial work safety meeting held a day after the accident. Shaanxi Vice Governor Li Xiaopeng said the flooding exposed "serious problems" in the implementation of safety measures and vowed a thorough investigation into the accident.

Operations of ChinaCoal could resume after a safety overhaul, officials said.

Rescuers Saturday recovered the bodies of eight workers who had been trapped underground in a flooded coal mine since Friday afternoon in the Shanyin County. Three others remain missing.

The mine is operated by Jinhaiyang Yuanbaowan Coal Company - a ChinaCoal subsidiary - and produces 900,000 tonnes of coal a year.

State-owned China National Coal Group is the country's second largest coal producer. Its coal output grew 22.9 percent to 154 million metric tonnes last year. The company's profit in 2010 reached 12.1 billion yuan ($1.94 billion).