SEOUL: One South Korean soldier died and another went missing on Tuesday after an accidental explosion during repair work on a submarine at a naval base in the southeast of the country, South Korean officials said.

Military authorities are investigating the cause of the blast at the base in Jinhae, which also left two others injured, Seoul's Defense Ministry said in a statement. The ministry provided no other details.

A ministry official, who didn't want to be named, citing office rules, said that the possibility of an attack was very low.