What’s new: At least 20 people have died after a landslide struck a village in Southwest China’s Yunnan province on Monday morning, while another 24 people were missing as of Tuesday afternoon, state media reported.
A section of a nearby cliff collapsed, burying at least 18 homes at the base 150 meters below, a local official said during a press conference Tuesday morning, according to a statement from the Yunnan provincial publicity department.
The collapsed section was around 100 meters wide, 60 meters high and 6 meters thick, releasing around 50,000 cubic meters of debris, Wu Junyao, head of Zhaotong’s Bureau of Natural Resources, said during the briefing.
More than 900 people have been relocated following the disaster, while rescue efforts remain underway, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
What’s more: The disaster struck Liangshui village just before 6 a.m. Monday in an area of northeastern Yunnan hit by freezing temperatures and snow recently. Residents of the affected Hexing and Heping villager groups are mainly of the Yi ethnic minority.
A person involved in search and rescue described one particular house to Caixin: “After the landslide occurred, a large number of stones rolled down, some smashing through the side of the house, others falling through the roof. The house was completely buried.”
Contact reporter Kelly Wang (jingzhewang@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
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