Death Toll Reaches 10 In Nw China Avalanche

[News_Editor]

Death toll reaches 10 in NW China avalanche < br />

2012-06-08 18:58:10 GMT+7 (ICT)

LANZHOU, CHINA (BNO NEWS) -- Rescue workers on Thursday afternoon recovered six more bodies from the site of an avalanche in northwestern China, raising the total death toll to ten, local authorities said on Friday. Two injured victims remain hospitalized.

The avalanche occurred late Tuesday night at a company's campsite in Subei county, which is located in a remote region of Gansu Province and is more than 4,300 meters (14,100 feet) above sea level. The campsite belongs to the Heicigou Antimony Ore Prospecting Station, which is operated by Subei Jinze Mining Co. Ltd.

The state-run Xinhua news agency reported that a total of 22 people were at the camp when the avalanche happened, burying 10 of them. Station chief Hu Jianzhong said twelve people were able to escape, including one person who was severely injured and rushed to a hospital in the region.

Search-and-rescue teams recovered three bodies as of Wednesday afternoon, and the body of a fourth victim was recovered hours later. The operation ended on Thursday afternoon when the six remaining workers were pulled out of the snow, raising the total death toll to 10. Officials do not believe anyone else is still missing.

Xinhua said ten of those injured have already been discharged and the two who remain hospitalized are not suffering from life-threatening injuries. The affected area, which is mostly a Mongolian ethnic area, had been hit by severe rainstorms in the hours before the deadly avalanche.

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