Landslide hits village in China, kills 11 people

Landslide hits village in China, kills 11 people
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Beijing: A landslide has hit a village in southwest China's Guizhou Province, killing 11 people and leaving 34 others missing, the local authorities said on Wednesday.

The landslide engulfed a village in the city of Liupanshui on Tuesday, burying 21 houses. More than 50 people were living in the affected area when the landslide struck it, according to rescuers.

So far, 11 people have been found dead, another 11 were rescued, and an estimated 34 remained missing, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The rescue work is still going on.

The Ministry of Emergency Management said Wednesday that it immediately activated an emergency response and sent a team to the site to assist the local governments in disaster relief.

Currently, some 560 professional rescuers are searching the site thoroughly for the missing to minimize casualties, the ministry said.

The ministry called for intensified geological and meteorological monitoring to prevent secondary disasters, and efforts to ensure the safety of rescuers.

Another landslide struck a construction site in a village in Hezhang County in Guizhou Province on Tuesday, leaving one dead and six others missing, according to the county government.

- By K J M Varma