75 still missing as rescue continues at landslide site

SHENZHEN - More than 5,000 rescuers with over 700 excavators and bulldozers are still searching through rubble for signs of life following Sunday's landslide at an industrial park in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, local authorities said Thursday.

The number still missing is now 75 since one survivor was rescued on Wednesday morning. Four bodies have also been found. Two out of 17 injured people have been discharged from hospital.

Zhu Tingfeng, deputy secretary of the municipal government, said at a press conference Thursday that they have been in touch with the families of 59 missing people.

Hundreds of doctors, nurses, and psychologists have been sent to nine temporary settlements near the landslide site and a psychological crisis intervention panel will offer counseling and comfort to the injured and families of the missing.

The landslide has also affected more than 4,600 workers in 90 factories and workshops, including 34 plants which were buried or damaged by mud and waste.

The survivor Tian Zeming, who was pulled out alive from debris on Wednesday over 60 hours after being buried, met his father for the first time since the landslide Thursday afternoon. Tian is in stable condition now.

"I want to express my thanks to the rescuers," said the father. Tian came to Shenzhen around two months ago. Before that, he worked in a factory in east China's Jiangsu Province with his mother and sister. After the landslide, one of his relatives saw Tian's name on the missing list.

"I was very worried when I knew my son was among the missing people. I called him but could not get through," the father recalled.

Trapped in a ruined building Tian survived on scattered snacks and an half bottle of water.

On Sunday, a mountain of construction waste collapsed on Hengtaiyu industrial park in Guangming New District, covering an area of 380,000 square meters, burying or damaging 33 buildings. A nearby section of a major gas pipeline burst, cutting off gas supply to neighboring Hong Kong.