11 missing after SW China landslide

CHONGQING - Eleven people are still missing after a rain-triggered landslide on Monday morning in Yunyang County in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, said local authorities.

Employees with the Yongfa coal mine, located in Jiangkou Township, encountered the landslide while they were transferring from their dormitory to a safe location after torrential rains started at 8:53 a.m., according to an official with the county's publicity bureau.

Twelve workers were buried after the landslide with one rescued at about 11 a.m.

Heavy rain has hit many parts of Chongqing since Sunday morning. Xianchi area of Yunyang County reported the highest precipitation with 287.5 mm within a day.

The rain has cut off communication in 17 towns in Wuxi County, also in Chongqing, as of 2 p.m. on Monday. Power supply in Gulu Township was cut off on Monday morning and thousands of local residents need to be evacuated.

Some 3,397 hectares of crops were affected and 66 km of roads were damaged in Wuxi with a direct economic losses of about 35 million yuan (5.68 million U.S. dollars), according to the county government.

Heavy rainfall is forecast in Chongqing on Tuesday, which will dampen rescue efforts.

At the site of another landslide that occurred five days ago in Guizhou Province, rescuers have wrapped up their search, with bodies of all 23 victims retrieved as of Monday morning.

The local government is investigating the cause of the disaster. Villagers have blamed local phosphorus mining for weakening the mountain's structure.