19 buried in SW China landslide

KUNMING - Nineteen people, including 18 students, were buried in a landslide that occurred on Thursday in southwest China's Yunnan province, local authorities said.

The accident happened around 8:00 am in the village of Zhenhe, located in Yiliang county of Zhaotong city, the county government said.

The landslide, estimated to be around 10,000 cubic meters, engulfed a primary school building, trapping 18 students, the government said.

Two residences near the school were also hit by the landslide, with one villager being buried. A family of three managed to escape the landslide before it arrived.

The government has moved local residents to safer places and dispatched rescue teams to the area.

On Sept 7, multiple earthquakes struck Yiliang county and its neighboring areas in Yunnan and Guizhou provinces, killing 81 people and injuring 800 others.