BEIJING: The death toll from a landslide in China’s southwestern Yunnan province has reached 20, state broadcaster CCTV said Tuesday (Jan 23), as search and rescue efforts continue at the site.
Dozens of people are still trapped after the pre-dawn landslide struck a remote and mountainous part of Zhenxiong County early Monday.
It buried 18 homes and sparked the evacuation of more than 200 people.
More than 24 hours since the disaster, state news agency Xinhua said rescue workers are now in a “race against time” to find those still missing, after a night of sub-zero temperatures.
“Search and rescue efforts persisted through the night,” firefighter Li Shenglong told Xinhua.
Wu Junyao, director of the natural resources and planning bureau of Zhaotong, told the news agency that the disaster “resulted from a collapse in the steep cliff area atop the slope”.
Two hundred rescue workers have been dispatched to the scene as well as dozens of fire engines and other equipment.
The site is covered in thick snow and rescuers are “using all kinds of tools to search for survivors”, Xinhua reported.
Wu told Xinhua the rescuers are digging through collapsed debris of “100m in width, 60m in height, with an average thickness of around 6m”.
CCTV showed footage of rescue workers digging through twisted metal and concrete overnight in a bid to find survivors.
Other CCTV footage showed locals huddling for warmth around a fire in a shelter, eating instant noodles.
People from the surrounding area have chipped in to help with relief efforts, state media said.
“Our village is nearby,” Hong Jie, 38, told Xinhua.
“Our main focus is on distributing supplies, cooking, and delivering food to those in need.”