06 June 2009 - 07H50
Scores missing after landslide buries mine
Up to 80 people are feared to have been buried alive in southwest China, after a landslide crashed down on the vast Chongqing municipality, burying houses and a mine. Hundreds of rescue workers were rushed in to search for survivors.
AFP - Hundreds of rescuers were Saturday desperately searching for dozens of people feared buried alive when part of a mountain collapsed in a massive landslide in southwest China, officials said.
Some 79 people were still missing after the disaster struck Friday afternoon in a mining district of the vast Chongqing municipality, a spokesman for Wulong district told AFP.
Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang arrived at the site early Saturday to supervise the rescue effort, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Seven people were rescued from the debris, three badly injured, local officials said. They were all taken to hospital.
The landslide occurred in the remote mountainous region of Jiwei in Wulong district. Mud and rock crashed down into the valley, burying houses and a working mine.
Around 500 rescue workers were dispatched from neighbouring districts to help 400 firefighters, police and other personnel deployed by authorities, according to the local communications department.
In September last year, 276 people were killed in the northern province of Shanxi by a massive landslide caused by the collapse of a reservoir of mine tailings.
Related Content
YouTube assault video worsens Somali reputation
Stay tuned
