Canadian police probe sixth gas pipeline bombing

* Explosion caused leak, no injuries

* Blast near site of Wednesday bombing

* Search for saboteur continues

By Allan Dowd

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, July 4 (Reuters) - An explosion damaged a natural gas pipeline in northeast British Columbia on Saturday, the sixth attack on an energy facility in that area of the Canadian province in recent months.

The explosion about 8 km south of the community of Dawson Creek, British Columbia, caused a leak but no injuries and was heard by crews repairing wellhead equipment damaged in a bombing on Wednesday, police said.

"The elements of this incident thus far, are consistent with the previous blast sites and the RCMP considers this latest bombing linked to the others," the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.

Pipeline owner EnCana Corp (ECA.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) said 12-inch (30-cm) diameter line carried "sour" gas that contains hydrogen sulphide and can be deadly if breathed, but none had been detected by monitoring equipment and there was no threat to the public.

The incident caused pressure in the line to drop, which activated emergency valves that immediately shut down the pipeline and stopped the leak, the company said.