62 Confirmed Dead in Chongqing LandslideAbout two-thirds of the fallen earth and rocks had been taken away from the site of the landslide which took place in Wulong County of Chongqing Municipality around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, burying a nine-story residential building. A group of officials from four departments under the State Council, including the ministries of land and resources, civil affairs and construction, arrived at the site at about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. It will begin conducting on-the-spot investigations and handling the aftermath of the tragedy early Thursday morning, local sources said. Only seven people out of 25 families in the building were known to have escaped the disaster, the sources said. Hundreds of police, soldiers and rescue workers were still digging through debris to search for those trapped inside. Tourists Found Among Victims of Chongqing LandslideTwo tourists were confirmed to be among those who were killed in a major landslide in Chongqing, southwest China, and six other tourists, including two kindergarten girls, were said to stay in the nine-story building buried in the landslide.The dead bodies of the two, who were husband and wife from Chongqing, were recognized by their relatives Thursday in Wulong County, site of the tragedy that took place around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. Relatives say the eight people traveled to Wulong in company and checked in at the rest house named "Mengzhiyuan" on the third floor of the nine-story building just before the accident. A total of 65 people have been found dead so far, with 18 of the dead bodies recognized by relatives and cremated. It is estimated that about 76 people were in the building when the accident took place, said local sources. Wulong is a tourist destination some 200 km away from Chongqing. In the past three days along, more than 20,000 tourists came to the county to spend their May Day holiday, the sources said. |
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