Landslides in central China kill at least 18

[News_Editor]

Landslides in central China kill at least 18

2011-07-06 06:57:46 GMT+7 (ICT)

XI'AN, CHINA (BNO NEWS) -- At least 18 people were killed after heavy rainfall caused landslides in central China, officials said early Wednesday morning.

Torrential rains continued until Tuesday in Lueyang County, located in China's Shaanxi Province, causing a 5,000-cubic meter (16,400-cubic feet) landslide at around 11:15 a.m. local time that covered 12 houses in the area, government officials told state-run Xinhua agency.

Over 400 people were deployed in search and rescue operations, successfully pulling out 20 people, but 17 of them died at the scene and one other later died while receiving medical treatment. The other two were reportedly being treated at a local hospital due to their injuries.

Search operation were ended early Wednesday morning after Provincial Highway 309 was cleared up, allowing traffic to flow normally.

However, heavy rainfall is forecast to continue in the upcoming 24 hours in the southern region of Shaanxi, as government officials have already deployed flood control personnel in order to evacuate residents and prepare for further flooding and/or landslides.

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