Death toll from east China landslide rises to 8

Eight people were confirmed dead on Saturday morning after a landslide hit a village in eastern China's Zhejiang Province Wednesday, local authorities said.

Nineteen people remain missing, according to the provincial government publicity office.

Rainstorms triggered by Typhoon Megi caused about 350,000 cubic meters of debris to slide down nearby mountains, burying 20 houses in Sucun Village, Suichang County on Wednesday. More than 1,460 residents living nearby were relocated.

Sources with the provincial administration of surveying, mapping and geo-information said the houses were buried at an average depth of 15 meters.

Persistent rain and poor traffic conditions have hampered rescue work, said Hu Gang, deputy head of Suichang County.

Bao Haigang, secretary general of a non-government rescue organization in Yiwu City, said they had mobilized four excavators but only two entered the landslide site for rescue.

So far, more than 4,000 people, 43 life detectors, four unmanned planes and 180 excavators and rescue vehicles, are racing against the clock to find survivors.

Source : XINHUA