Rescuers search for at least 29 people after a landslide in southwest China

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese rescuers searched for at least 29 people after a landslide on Saturday in southwestern Sichuan province buried 10 houses and forced hundreds of residents to evacuate.

The Ministry of Emergency Management deployed hundreds of rescuers including firefighters following the landslide in a village in Junlian county. Two people were pulled out alive with injuries, and about 200 others were relocated, state broadcaster CCTV said. A manufacturing facility was also buried.

The disaster was caused by recent heavy rainfall and geological conditions, authorities said in a news conference on Sunday. These factors transformed a landslide into a debris flow, resulting in an accumulation of debris stretching about 1.2 kilometers (0.7 miles) in length, with a total volume exceeding 100,000 cubic meters (3.5 million cubic feet).

Authorities were still confirming the total number of missing.

A villager told BeijingNews that rocks were frequently seen rolling down the mountain since the second half of 2024, in some cases making sounds similar to firecrackers. The villager said geologists had inspected the area late last year, the state-run newspaper reported.

President Xi Jinping expressed his concern and urged authorities to make every effort to search for the missing people and minimize casualties, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang asked for an investigation and inspection of potential geological hazard risks in nearby areas. Li also said residents who were under threat should be evacuated to prevent another disaster, according to Xinhua.

China has allocated 80 million yuan (about $11 million) to support disaster relief and recovery efforts.

Landslides, often caused by rain or unsafe construction work, are not uncommon in China. Last year, a landslide in a remote, mountainous part of China’s southwestern province of Yunnan killed dozens of people.