Several dead after landslide in southwest China

 

TT-AP 

Published 18:49

 

More than 800 rescue workers have been deployed in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing. The image was provided by the state-run Xinhua News Agency. Photo: Wang Quanchao/AP/TT

At least eight people have died and 34 are missing after a major landslide in Chongqing in southwest China, state-run Chinese media reported.

Large amounts of rock, stone and soil were thrown down a mountainside and buried several residential buildings in the Chinese city in Pengshui province on Friday, Chinese CCTV reported.

The landslide occurred at 9 a.m. local time and more than 1,100 people have been evacuated from the affected area.

Rescue services are reported to have had difficulty reaching the disaster site as the terrain is considered very unstable. At least one person has been rescued from the rubble.

Heavy rainfall in a nearby river is said to be the cause of the landslide in the Chinese mountain town.