China landslide death toll rises to 8, with 19 missing
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In the village of Ridi, near the collapsed bridge, six other people were killed and 11 were missing.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
BEIJING - At least eight people were killed and 19 missing after a landslide hit a village in south-western China and resulted in the collapse of a highway bridge, state media said on Aug 4.
The disaster struck early Saturday morning near Kangding, in the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in south-western Sichuan province.
The highway bridge, which linked two tunnels, collapsed in the aftermath of a flash flood and mudslide, with four cars carrying 11 people plummeting off it, said state broadcaster CCTV.
One person was rescued but two others were found dead and eight were missing.
In the village of Ridi, near the collapsed bridge, six other people were killed and 11 were missing, CCTV reported.
China is experiencing a summer of extreme weather events, including torrential rains, flooding, landslides and record-high temperatures, which scientists say are made more frequent and intense by climate change.
Last month, the collapse of a highway bridge in northern Shaanxi province killed 38 people and left 24 missing, state media said on Aug 2.
Heavy rains in central China this week have also killed at least 30 people and left 35 missing, according to a provisional toll published on Aug 1.
Swaths of eastern China have baked under a scorching heatwave this weekend, with temperatures in some areas reaching record highs.
The mercury reached 40.4 deg C in downtown Shanghai on Sunday, a record high this year, according to state media outlet The Paper. AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
