Hundreds of households were evacuated after a huge spill of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in a city in northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Workers from 15 nearby factories had to leave their work and two primary schools had to interrupt classes, local government sources said on Tuesday.

The leak occurred early Monday morning when about 100 tons of LNG leaked from a tank belonging to Fushun LNG Company Ltd, according to Jiang Yonghe, director of the Fire Fighting Bureau of Fushun City.

More than 300 firefighters and police were called out to help control the leak and evacuate residents in the Dongzhou District of the city. 

In the bitterly cold weather at least one worker suffered frostbite while attempting to stop the leak, the company said.

The cause of the accident is being investigated.

(Xinhua News Agency December 5, 2006)