Benxi

Benxi is a prefecture-level city in the east of Liaoning province in northeastern China, lying southeast of the provincial capital Shenyang. It was founded as a metallurgical center in 1915 and grew around heavy industry. The Benxi Iron and Steel Company, known as Bengang, is the largest employer in the city and was once the fourth-largest steel company in China, while coal mining is the second-largest industry. The steel and coal work has left the city with pollution problems. At the 2020 census the prefecture had 1,326,018 residents, down from 1,709,538 in 2010, and 809,655 of them lived in the built-up area made up of three urban districts: Pingshan, Xihu and Mingshan. Administratively the prefecture has four districts and two Manchu autonomous counties, and the area is home to a notable number of Manchu and Hui people. Its history includes the 1942 Benxihu Colliery coal-dust explosion, which killed 1,549 miners.