Rescuers Claw Through Rock and Mud for 34 Missing After a Landslide Buries Homes in China
A rain-triggered landslide in Chongqing's Pengshui County flattened more than 10 buildings, killing at least eight people as crews with excavators, dogs and detectors raced against the threat of a second collapse.
BEIJING — Rescuers in southwestern China dug through a mountain of rock and mud over the weekend, searching for 34 people still missing after a massive landslide buried more than 10 residential buildings in Chongqing municipality, killing at least eight.
The disaster struck early Friday in Pengshui County, on the outer edge of Chongqing, when a huge volume of rock and soil sheared off a slope and roared down onto a cluster of homes near the Wujiang River. The area sits in rugged karst terrain that had been soaked by days of rain, conditions that geologists say make slopes prone to sudden failure.
Wang Chuanjun, head of planning and natural resources in Pengshui County, said the landslide contained about 18,000 cubic meters of rock and debris, with a single boulder measuring roughly 3,000 cubic meters. The sheer scale of the material complicated the search, forcing crews to map out a careful excavation plan to avoid triggering a secondary collapse that could bury survivors and rescuers alike.
By Saturday, teams aided by sniffer dogs and life-detection equipment had picked up signs of life in the rubble, confirming that at least one person remained trapped and alive beneath the debris. Ten people were pulled out and taken to hospitals, officials said, and more than 120 experts were deployed to guide the operation as excavators clawed at the unstable pile.
Authorities evacuated over 1,100 residents from 21 buildings inside the potential impact zone as a precaution against further slides. China's National Development and Reform Commission allocated 30 million yuan, about $4.4 million, to support the restoration of infrastructure and public services in the shattered community.
The rescue unfolded under grueling conditions. Intermittent rain kept falling over the site through the weekend, raising the water content of the debris and the danger of fresh movement on the scarred hillside. Crews rotated in shifts, using cranes to lift the largest boulders and hand tools to pick through the finer rubble where sensors suggested people might still be buried, all while structural engineers watched the slope above for warning signs.
Landslides are a recurring and deadly hazard across China's mountainous interior, particularly during the summer flood season when torrential rains destabilize hillsides. The Pengshui collapse is the latest in a string of disasters that have prompted the government to expand monitoring and early-warning systems, though the speed and force of such events often leave little time to flee. Officials said the search would continue around the clock, even as the risk of renewed slides hung over the exhausted crews.
Originally reported by Associated Press.