More than 100 people feared buried in China landslide

More than 100 people are feared buried after rain triggered a landslide in south-western China, state media reported on Saturday.


Around 40 homes were buried in Maoxian County in Sichuan province, the Xinhua news agency reported.

The landslide hit the village of Xinmo at around 6 am (2200 GMT Friday), according to Xinhua. Maoxian County, is home to about 110,000 people, according to the government's website.

The landslide also blocked a 2 kilometer (1.24 mile)-section of a river. Wang Yongbo, a local rescue official, told state broadcaster CCTV that an estimated 3 million cubic meters (105 million cubic feet) of earth and rock had slid down the mountain.

Homes in the village of Xinmo were swallowed by the cascading debris after the side of a mountain collapsed. The village is known locally for tourism and Chinese reports said it was unclear if tourists were among the people buried by the landslide.

An emergency response "to the first class catastrophic geological disaster" is under way, the statement said, adding that the full extent of the landslide was at yet unclear.

Search and rescue efforts were underway involving more than 400 rescuers, including police.
 [aljazeera.com]
24/6/17