Death Toll Rises to 18 After Landslide Rips Through Southwest China

Massive flooding triggered a landslide in southwest China on Wednesday, killing at least 18 people.

At least 18 are dead and 107 are reported missing after a landslide the size of a small town ripped through southwest China on Wednesday, reports CNN.

The landslide, which toppled 11 buildings in Sichuan province’s Dujiangyan city, was triggered by flooding that has affected 1.5 million people and inundated tens of thousands of acres of crops. Officials said that the rainfall in the city has been the highest since national weather records were established in 1954.

Rescuers continued to dig through the area Thursday in search of the missing. The forecast calls for less rain, which will ease the search.

According to BBC News, about 329 million gallons of mud, rock and debris covered the area affected by the landslide

A local told Xinhua news agency that he ran outside after he heard the landslide outside his home.

“I could see the hill opposite me had collapsed,” he said. “There was a buzzing noise for around two or three minutes. My first feeling was that the hill had collapsed and the entire hillside was buried.”

Another landslide trapped 2,000 people in a tunnel Wednesday before being rescued by emergency teams.

Read More From Heavy

Landslide Traps 83 Chinese Workers in Tibet Goldmine