China landslide death toll rises to three as nine remain missing

The number of people killed by a landslide in southeastern China’s Jiangxi province has risen to three, while nine others remain missing, state news agency Xinhua reported on Sunday.

The landslide struck at about 4 a.m. Saturday in Gaoping, in Suichuan county, after several days of heavy rain linked to Typhoon Saudel. It affected 12 homes. Eight were completely destroyed and four were damaged.

Search operations gained access to the area after teams fully reopened the road to Mingkeng village at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday. Rescue machinery could then move in gradually. Three excavators had already reached the command post during the early morning, while authorities also mobilized boats and other equipment to try to open water routes to the worst-hit locations.

Jiangxi activated a level II emergency response for geological disasters on Saturday. The Ministry of Natural Resources raised its response mechanism from level IV to level III and sent a working team to the area. The four-level system runs from IV to I, with level I representing the highest severity.

Saudel’s remnants continued to bring heavy rain after the cyclone weakened. The storm also caused flooding in neighboring Fujian province, where more than 100 homes collapsed this week.