On April 26, 1942, a coal dust and gas explosion devastated the Benxihu Colliery in Benxi, Liaoning Province, China, under Japanese occupation, killing over 1,549 miners in what is believed to be the deadliest mining disaster in history. Poor safety practices, forced labor, and wartime pressures exacerbated the tragedy, with many deaths from suffocation by carbon monoxide. Bodies were not fully recovered for days. This event exemplified the brutal exploitation in occupied territories during World War II.

While direct poetic responses were suppressed under occupation, the Benxihu disaster contributed to postwar Chinese literature on wartime suffering and industrial tragedy, influencing socialist realist poetry that honored workers' sacrifices. It parallels themes in global anti-imperialist verse, inspiring reflections on human cost in labor poetry by later Chinese and international writers addressing exploitation.