Rescuers race against time to find survivors

Following two deaths, rescue workers are still racing against the clock to search for 17 others buried under the soil on Friday after a landslide struck Guowa township in Dafang county, Bijie, Guizhou province, on Thursday.

Also on Thursday, another landslide hit Changshi township in that area, making two people trapped. The pair were later found dead, according to Xinhua News Agency.

No more casualties have been updated as of 10 pm on Friday.

"Since Friday morning, rain has increased the risk of a secondary landslide at the site, complicating our rescue efforts," said Chen Yinghong, deputy head of the news and publicity department at the provincial fire and rescue corps at the rescue scene in Guowa.

He added that they have sent 210 personnel, 67 vehicles, search-and-rescue dogs, life-detection radar devices and other essential equipment to the scene.

Rescue teams have used drone photography and 3D modeling, which they cross-reference with historical satellite images, to reconstruct the mountain's shape before the slide. By analyzing the landslide's path and force, they can pinpoint the most likely burial zones, he said.

Media livestreaming showed the entire landslide slope roughly assumes a spindle shape in the affected areas of Guowa township.

"The sheer force of water, mud, and rocks made it impossible for houses to withstand. Landslides are more destructive than mudslides, as they involve entire sections of earth collapsing. This often results in homes being destroyed or buried, making search and rescue extremely challenging," said Wan Hanbin, director of the urban public safety planning research institute of the Beijing Tsinghua Urban Planning and Design Institute.

But the rescue efforts continue. By 1:30 pm, on-site power had been largely restored, said Wang Feng, head of the production and technology department at the Bijie power supply bureau. Except for the disaster-hit central zone, where conditions still prevent safe repair work, all other supply areas are back online.

Liu Kai also from the bureau said that, due to frequent heavy rain and diverse weather in the area, the authority cooperated with the meteorological department to pre-deploy repair teams and stockpile materials ahead of Thursday's downpour, ensuring a rapid response to any power outages.

By 2 pm, the bureau had deployed 224 staff members and 54 vehicles, including four mobile generator trucks, nine lighting towers and three mobile charging stations. Most of the equipment are already in use.

The vast southern regions in China including Hubei, Guizhou provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region have been confronted with strong rainfall in the past few days. The heavy rainfall is expected to move eastward and southward on Friday, with parts of Guangxi and Guangdong likely to experience torrential downpours, according to the National Meteorological Center.

In Guangxi, flash floods and mudslides at about 5 am on Friday claimed three lives at Sanshe village, Longsheng county of Guilin. Five others are missing, China Central Television reported.

Ten houses were damaged and other residents have been relocated, according to the preliminary reports.

According to Guilin's meteorological department, between 8 am Thursday and 8 am on Friday, 14 townships experienced torrential rainfall.

The current round of heavy rainfall in southern regions is expected to ease on Saturday. However, from May 27, rain will likely to intensify again in these regions, according to the National Meteorological Center, with warnings issued to the affected residents to stay alert on the risks of natural disasters.

Contact the writers at chenmeiling@chinadaily.com.cn