Rescue work ongoing after highway bridge collapses, killing 12

Rescue work was still underway on Saturday after the partial collapse of a highway bridge in Northwest China's Shaanxi province. Part of the bridge was swept away on Friday night due to heavy rains.

Local authorities confirmed that as of 12 am on Saturday, 7 vehicles falling into the river had been found, 12 people killed and 1 person rescued. There are still 18 vehicles and 31 people missing, and the search is ongoing.

The Ministry of Emergency Management has sent a team to guide the rescue work at the site. Firefighting and rescue forces at various levels have deployed 736 rescuers, 76 vehicles, 18 vessels and 32 drones.

The bridge in Zhashui county, Shangluo city, along the Danfeng-Ningshan highway collapsed at about 8:40 pm on Friday due to sudden downpour and flash floods, according to the provincial publicity department.

About 40 meters of the bridge caved in, cutting off traffic both ways, said the provincial traffic police.

By 10 am on Saturday, rescue teams had recovered five vehicles from the river.

Shangluo observatory issued the red alert, or the highest-level alert, for heavy rains on Friday morning.

Heavy rains were recorded across the city on Friday, with 29 stations reporting more than 100 millimeters rainfall between 5 am and 8 pm.

The observatory forecast at 10 am on Saturday rain storms in 24 hours and risks of flooding and landslide.

Traffic control was imposed on a number of highways in Shangluo due to flooding and landslide, the provincial traffic police announced on Friday afternoon.

Xinhua contributed to this story.