At least 24 people killed in south China road collapse

AFP | Beijing, China

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

At least 24 people died after part of a highway collapsed due to heavy rains in southern China’s Guangdong province yesterday, state media said.

Guangdong, a densely populated industrial powerhouse, has been lashed by rainstorms in recent weeks, causing severe flooding and landslides in some areas. The downpours have been much heavier than would normally be expected for the time of year and have been linked to accelerating climate change.

State news agency Xinhua said that a stretch of road between Meizhou city and Dabu county in Guangdong province caved in at around 2:10 am on Wednesday (1810 GMT Tuesday).

The incident caused 20 vehicles to become trapped and involved a total of 54 people, according to Xinhua. As of 3:00 pm (1900 GMT), “24 people have been confirmed dead, and 30 are receiving all-out emergency care in hospital”, Xinhua said.

Recovery work was ongoing and the lives of those hospitalised were “not currently at risk”, it added, without specifying their injuries.

An aerial photograph published by state broadcaster CCTV showed wrecked vehicles lying in a deep muddy pit where the highway once ran.

Dozens of emergency vehicles and cranes congregated along the intact section of the road, which bisects a steep, wooded slope.

Videos circulating on social media -- apparently filmed before dawn -- showed flames and smoke emanating from the pit.

“You can’t go any further,” a man is heard saying in one video, adding that parts of the road had given way.