A coal mine gas leak has left one person dead and another five missing in central China's Hunan Province, local authorities said on Sunday.

The accident took place at about 7:45 PM on Saturday at the state-owned Yuanjia Coal Mine in Jiahe County, Chenzhou City, when six people were working underground, a spokesman with the local work safety administration said.

Rescuers are searching for the missing people, the spokesman said.

An investigation into the cause of the accident has been underway, he added.

(Xinhua News Agency July 5, 2009)