The gas explosion that occurred Saturday afternoon in the Xialiuchong Coal Mine in Hengyang city of central China's Hunan Province has left 28 miners dead and one more trapped, rescuers said Sunday.

A total of 35 miners were working in the coal mine as the mishap happened around 6 p.m. Saturday and of them six have been rescued and sent to hospital for treatment, according to authorities.

Some 40 rescuers were searching the remaining one trapped.

Dozens of vehicles were at the scene including ambulances and others from police and safety supervision authorities as Xinhua reporters reached the coal mine Saturday night.

Family members and relatives of the coal mine workers were waiting on the spot, with some bursting out crying from time to time.

Luo Lin, head of the State Administration of Work Safety, and Xu Shousheng, governor of Hunan Province, already reached the site to direct the rescue operation, on Saturday night and in the wee hours of Sunday, respectively.

A 40-year-old mining enterprise, the state-owned Xialiuchong Coal Mine, located in Changjiang township of Hengshan county, Hengyang city, is a legally-operating mine with more than 160 miners, Xinhua reporters have learnt.