Death toll rises to 11 in China landslide

Beijing, Jan 23: The death toll from a landslide that struck a mountainous village in southwest China's Yunnan province has climbed to 11, local authorities said on early Tuesday morning.

The landslide occurred in Liangshui village in the city of Zhaotong at about 6 a.m. on Monday, with 47 people reported missing. As of 10 p.m. Monday, 11 people were found dead, according to the local disaster relief headquarters.

More than 1,000 rescue workers are carrying out search and rescue work at the site, Xinhua news agency reported.

Preliminary investigation by an expert group determined that the disaster resulted from a collapse in the steep cliff area atop the slope, said Wu Junyao, director of the natural resources and planning bureau of Zhaotong.

The collapsed mass measured nearly 100 metre in width, 60 metre in height, with an average thickness of around 6 metre, he added.