BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Accidents claimed the lives of 30,753 Chinese in the first four months of the year, down 12.8 percent from the same period last year, according to the State Administration of Work Safety.

The safety watchdog, however, said the death toll from coalmine accidents rose 2.1 percent in April, without giving the specific number.

It also said that during the seven-day May Day holiday, 60 people were killed or still missing in 23 coal mine accidents, while 110 died in 24 traffic accidents.

"The work safety situation is still grim, and the rebound in accident deaths has not been effectively prevented," Li Yizhong, head of the administration, said on Tuesday.

Li said three severe accidents that each killed more than 30 people had occurred since mid April, including two mine gas blasts and the deaths of 32 workers in Tieling City, northeastern Liaoning province, when a steel ladle -- used for pouring molten steel -- sheared off from the iron rail linking it to the blast furnace.

"The frequent occurrences of severe accidents highlight the safety loopholes in major, high-risk industries," he said.

He said a nationwide campaign would be launched from May to September to find and fix the safety loopholes in a bid to reduce accident deaths.