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Introduction: Senior managers' attitudes towards safety are very important regarding the safety practices in an organization. The study is to describe the current situation of senior managers' attitudes towards safety in the Chinese coal industry. Method: We evaluated the changing trends as well as the reasons for these changes in the Chinese coal industry in 2009 and in 2014 with 168 senior manager samples from large Chinese state-owned coal enterprises. Evaluations of 15 safety concepts were performed by means of a questionnaire. Results and Conclusions: Results indicate that, in 2014, three concepts were at a very high level (mean > 4.5), and six were at a relatively high level (4.5 > mean > 4.0). Analyses of changing trends revealed that nine concepts improved significantly, while four greatly declined in 2014 compared to those in 2009. The data reported here suggest that the reasons for the significant improvement with respect to the nine concepts include the improvement in social and legal environments, the improvement of the culture of social safety, workers' safety demands being met, and scientific and technical advances in the coal industry. The decline of the four concepts seemed to be caused by a poor awareness of managers in the coal industry that safety creates economic benefits, insufficient information on safety, inadequate attention to the development of a safety culture and safety management methods, and safety organizations and workers' unions not playing their role effectively. Practical Applications: We therefore recommend strengthening the evidence that safety creates economic benefits, providing incentives for employees to encourage their participation in safety management, and paying more attention to the prevention of accidents in coal mines via safety organizations and unions. These results can provide guidelines for workers, industrialists, and government regarding occupational safety in the whole coal industry.

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Explosives spontaneous combustion accidents in underground coal mines have not been taken seriously in China despite serious casualties and property losses. In order to avoid disasters of this sort, anatomy on eight accidents were performed, mainly involving the process of the occurrence and development, characteristics of casualties, causes and prevention. Improper storage and use of shoddy explosives were the primary reasons for these accidents. Toxic gases and smoke were generated in the explosives' smoldering or burning, so the poisoning and suffocation were the main types of casualties. Besides, unsafe acts of different staff, which resulted in the occurrence of accidental events and the expansion of casualties (i.e., affecting the evacuation and rescue), were analyzed emphatically, and almost all of them were violations. The senior manager and middle manager were the main producers of unsafe acts, which can provide the guidance for employees' targeted training and supervision. Overall, eliminating unsafe acts is an effective way to prevent this kind of accidents, and casualties can be reduced or even avoided through the proper evacuation and rescue.