Chinese state media say 11 workers were killed and two seriously injured when the cable on an elevator snapped at a construction site in northern China.

The Voice of China radio said the accident occurred early Thursday morning in the Hebei province city of Hengshui.

It is the latest in a series of industrial accidents this year that have killed scores of workers, underscoring shoddy enforcement of safety regulations and a desire to cut corners as the economy slows.

In March, 78 people were killed in a blast at a chemical plant in the Jiangsu province city of Yancheng that had numerous safety violations, making it one of China's worst industrial accidents in recent years.