Beijing — Chinese rescuers scoured around rocks yesterday in a frantic search for more than 140 people feared buried after a landslide smashed through a mountain village in southwest Sichuan province.
A couple and a baby were rescued and taken to hospital after 46 homes in the village of Xinmo were swallowed by huge boulders when the side of a mountain collapsed, according to the local Maoxian, or Mao county, government.
A fourth survivor was found but rescuers were still trying to get to him.
At least 141 people were missing, the People’s Daily said, citing a Maoxian government spokesperson.
The landslide blocked a 2km stretch of river and 1.6km of road.
Rescuers used ropes to move a massive rock while dozens of others, aided by dogs, searched the rubble for survivors, according to videos posted online by the Maoxian government and state broadcaster CCTV.
Bulldozers and heavy diggers were also deployed to remove boulders, the images showed.
Medics were seen treating a woman on a road. Hundreds of police, military and firefighters were taking part in the rescue. — AFP