Landslide traps 47 people in southwest China; 2 killed
Beijing/Kunming(PTI): At least two people were killed and over 40 others went missing after a landslide struck southwest China's mountainous Yunnan province on Monday.
The disaster struck the Liangshui village of Zhaotong city at 5:51 am Beijing time, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Over 500 residents were evacuated from the landslide-hit areas as the provincial commission for disaster reduction activated a Level-III emergency response for disaster relief, state-run CCTV reported.
Efforts were ongoing to rescue the people trapped under the landslide, official media reported, adding that two of the missing people found dead.
The 47 buried people were from 18 different households, rescue officials said.
More than 200 rescuers, along with 33 firefighting vehicles and 10 loading machines, were mobilised to search for the missing.
Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered an all-out search and rescue of the people missing in a landslide.
[We should] promptly organise rescue teams, make all-out efforts to search for missing individuals, and minimise casualties to the greatest extent possible,” Xi said, according to the report.
Xi, the general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, called on party cadres to watch out for other natural disaster risks and hidden dangers “to effectively ensure the safety of people’s lives and property” as a result of the wave of cold weather that swept across southern China just three weeks before the Lunar New Year.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang, too, ordered an all-out rescue effort in Liangshui and emphasised the need to maintain social stability, in light of the area’s high altitude and ethnic diversity.
“It is necessary to promptly evacuate the threatened population, handle resettlement properly, effectively ensure the safety of people’s lives and property, and maintain overall social stability,” he said, official media reported.
The cause of the landslide was not immediately known.
The local weather forecast said there will be light snow in the town on Tuesday, with the lowest temperature expected to reach -3 degrees Celsius, the report said.
47 villagers were buried in a landslide that occurred in Zhenxiong County of Zhaotong City, southwest China's Yunnan Province on early Monday, local authorities said. A search and rescue operation is currently underway. pic.twitter.com/ugDPG8XiMA
— People's Daily, China (@PDChina) January 22, 2024
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Attacks on Christians contradict PM's message of harmony, visit to church: Gehlot
Jaipur (PTI): Former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday expressed concern over the reported attacks and disruptions in prayer gatherings of the Christian community in different parts of the country, saying such incidents were "worrying and condemnable".
In a post on X, Gehlot said that while the Prime Minister Narendra Modi was visiting a church and giving a message of peace and harmony, news of attacks on members of the Christian community from various regions reflected a serious contradiction.
ALSO READ: FIR registered against over 30 for vandalising Christmas decorations at Raipur mall
"Symbolic gestures would not be enough, and strict legal action was required against those spreading hatred," the senior Congress leader said.
He added that Indian culture has always upheld the spirit of "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam", where every citizen has full freedom to practise their faith.
Gehlot urged the Centre and state governments to uphold the rule of law and ensure that no citizen is forced to celebrate their festival under fear.
