Six people died and 17 others were injured in a road accident Saturday afternoon in east China's Jiangsu Province, local publicity officials said.

The accident happened at about 1:38 p.m. when a coach hit into the side of a semi-trailer at a crossroad in the town of Daxu in Xuzhou City, the Publicity Department of Xuzhou Communist Party Committee said in a statement.

Six people on the coach died on the spot, including the driver, according to the statement.

The injured were rushed to local hospitals, yet their conditions are not immediately known.

An investigation into the cause of the accident is under way.