Rescuers struggling to search for 80 still missing in SW China deadly mudslides

Rescuers are racing to search for 80 people still missing three days after rain-triggered mudslides hit a remote mountain town in southwest China's Yunnan Province, killing at least 12.

Rescuers find a victim's body which is covered by hardboard in mudslide-hit Puladi Township of Gongshan Drung-Nu Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Aug. 20, 2010. The rain-triggered mudslides in Puladi killed 12 people, with 80 others still missing and 38 injured as of 8 a.m. local time Friday (00:00 GMT Aug. 20). (Xinhua/Lin Yiguang)
By 7 p.m. Friday, rescuers had recovered six more bodies, bringing the death toll to 12, said Hou Xinrong, deputy head of the Drung-Nu Autonomous County of Gongshan, which administers Puladi Township where the mudslides occurred.

Hampered by the mountain terrain and persistent rainfall, the rescue efforts had been progressing slowly, Hou said. "Excavators can't proceed to the site and mountain torrents could be triggered at any time due to the downpours."

Most of the missing people are employees of the Yujin Iron Mine and residents of Puladi, where the mudslides struck at about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Around Friday noon, a Xinhua reporter saw several soldiers digging in the debris with spades, hoes and sometimes their bare hands in hardest-hit Litoudi Village.

"We've found a body here, but it was stuck in the mud. We have to be gentle to ensure the integrity of the body," said Yang Pingang, an officer with the Yunnan Provincial Military Area Command. "We want to show our respects to the deceased."


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