Mudslide At Iron Mine In Northwest China Kills 7, Buries 21

Mudslide at iron mine in northwest China kills 7, buries 21 < br />

2012-08-01 01:26:15 GMT+7 (ICT)

ARALTOBE, CHINA (BNO NEWS) -- A mudslide buried the site of an iron mine in northwestern China on early Tuesday morning, killing at least seven people and leaving 21 others missing, local authorities said. Among the victims are several local residents.

The incident occurred early Tuesday morning at around 1 a.m. local time at an iron mine in the township of Araltobe, located in Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture of China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. The region, as well as other parts of the country, have been hit by torrential rains in recent weeks.

A fire brigade spokesman told the state-run Xinhua news agency that the mud and debris buried 28 people, including 22 miners and six local residents who were collecting iron ores. Rescue workers had recovered seven bodies by Tuesday afternoon, including three miners and four locals.

The remaining 21 people remain missing, and authorities expressed little hope of finding survivors, but rescue efforts were continuing on late Tuesday. Search-and-rescue teams are using sniffer dogs and life-detecting devices to help locate possible survivors in the debris, which covers an area about 500 meters (1,640 feet) long, 60 meters (196 feet) wide and six meters (19 feet) deep.

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