10 rescued after mountain collapse hits China's Chongqing

CHONGQING, July 17 (Xinhua) -- Ten people have been rescued as of 2 p.m. Friday after a rainfall-induced landslide occurred along a section of the Wujiang River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

All of those rescued are in stable condition with no life-threatening injuries, while more than 1,100 residents living in the vicinity of the disaster site have been evacuated to safety, according to local authorities of Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County in Chongqing.

To facilitate risk investigation and prevent secondary hazards, water, electricity and gas supplies within a 1-kilometer radius around the affected area have been temporarily suspended. More than 800 rescuers are carrying out search and rescue operations at the site.

The collapse occurred at 9:08 a.m. Friday in Hanjia sub-district of Pengshui, bringing down multiple residential buildings at the foot of the mountain. The exact number of people still buried is being further verified.

The geological disaster saw massive amounts of rock and soil wash downslope, burying more than 10 residential buildings, leaving local residents trapped and unaccounted for.

Jiang Wei, head of a professional emergency rescue team in Chongqing, said an all-out search and rescue mission has been launched.

China Anneng Construction Group, a state-owned engineering rescue force, has dispatched 110 professional rescuers, including engineering and geological experts, alongside 50 sets of detection, search and rescue equipment to support the disaster relief operation in Pengshui.

Rescuers said three power poles were buried, disrupting power supply in the affected area. Local power departments have dispatched 53 maintenance workers, 12 repair vehicles and one emergency power vehicle in the disaster response.