Heavy rains trigger landslide in China's southwestern Guizhou province; 13 dead, over 35 missing, reports local media

Beijing, China:  Thirteen people have died and 35 are missing after heavy rains triggered a landslide in China’s southwestern Guizhou province, state broadcaster CCTV said Wednesday. Rescuers have also freed 11 survivors since a mudslide buried 21 houses in a village in Shuicheng county on Tuesday night, the Ministry of Emergency Management said in a statement on the Twitter-like Weibo platform. [caption id=“attachment_2772394” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational Image. AP[/caption] Video of the landslide aired by CCTV showed the side of a collapsed hill covered in thick mud, and excavators digging through the debris. Rescue workers in helmets with torches were seen struggling through the sludge as ambulances waited nearby. About 560 rescuers were still combing through the scene searching for survivors, the statement said. Chinese president Xi Jinping has called for a “careful investigation” into flood and disaster management to reduce further damage, the ministry said. The government has earmarked 30 million yuan ($4.35 million) for disaster relief efforts in the province, China’s official Xinhua news agency reported. Landslides are a frequent danger in rural and mountainous parts of China, particularly after heavy rain, and the country has suffered heavy flooding in 2019. A separate landslip at a construction site at a village in Hezhang County in Guizhou on Tuesday killed one person and six others are missing, the county government said. About 2.2 million people in Guizhou have been affected by floods and strong winds in the first half of the year, and natural disasters have cost the local economy 3.1 billion yuan ($450 million), Xinhua said.