BEIJING: Three people died and 558 others were still missing after a mudslide in Tibet on the China-Nepal border, Chinese state media reported Thursday (Aug 27), citing local officials.
Of the missing, 260 were foreign nationals, it said.
More than a thousand rescuers, equipped with dogs and drones, were searching for survivors after a wall of mud and debris swept over buildings on the Chinese side of the border on Wednesday morning.
A clip of surveillance video from the Chinese side of the frontier showed dozens of people running for their lives as the surge crashed down.
Rescue operations face multiple challenges, including "the instability of a reservoir lake upstream" and "the narrow mountain road", Li Qipu, a member of China's paramilitary People's Armed Police, told state broadcaster CCTV.
Large vehicles and heavy equipment cannot currently reach the main disaster zone, although surrounding roads remain open, allowing supplies to get in from behind, according to the broadcaster.
Authorities have dispatched nearly 800 people and more than 150 vehicles to the border area, according to state news agency Xinhua.
The fire service has deployed 431 personnel, working with search dogs, life-detection scanners, and small boats, it said.
CCTV broadcast images of People's Armed Police members in camouflage and orange vests with shovels, as well as rescuers flying drones.
Civilian and military aircraft carrying relief supplies have arrived in Tibet, CCTV said.
Due to overnight rainfall, the risk of secondary disasters such as landslides and rockfalls remains high.
The Tibet Autonomous Region is largely inaccessible to foreign journalists, who are generally only allowed to visit on government-organized trips. - AFP
