A coal mine accident killed six people in north China's Shanxi Province, local authorities said Saturday.

The accident took place at about 9:00PM Friday at an illegally-run coal mine located at the Shijialing Village of Jingle County in Xinzhou City, a press official with Jingle County government said.

But it was not immediately known what type of accident it was, as local authorities were trying to capture the mine owner, the official said.

One of the six victims came from central China's Henan Province and the other five from southwestern Sichuan Province, he said.

The coal mine had been sealed off before the accident happened, he said.

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

This is the latest coal mine accident in Shanxi, a coal-rich province. Three mine accidents took place in Shanxi's Linfen City in March, in which 32 people were killed and 35 government officials were sacked.

(Xinhua News Agency April 1, 2007)