The death toll after a section of highway collapsed in southern China has reached 48, according to a new tally released Thursday by state media.
UPDATE 12.00 The Chinese authorities have increased the number of victims in the last few hours, to at least 48 dead and 30 injured.
The rescue operations, in which more than 500 people took part, continue, given the extent of the surprise, and aim to free all the vehicles and recover the bodies.
The 30 injured were taken to nearby hospitals, they are out of any danger.
The original news
The Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday at 05:30 (Wednesday, 21:20 GMT) that “36 people lost their lives and 30 people were injured”, specifying that the lives of the injured are not in danger.
Twenty vehicles were “caught” in the derailment on a stretch of highway between Meizhou City and Dabu County in Guangdong Province at around 02:10 on Wednesday (18:10 GMT Tuesday), in which 54 people were involved. total, Xinhua had indicated, writes Agerpres.
State broadcaster CCTV said the outburst was a “natural geological disaster” that occurred “under the impact of persistent heavy rains”.
Heavy downpours have lashed the industrial province of Guangdong, which has Canton as its capital, in recent weeks, causing severe flooding and landslides. For the past few days, the torrential rains have been much heavier than normal for this time of the year just ahead of the monsoon season.
“Intensification of climate change” increases the likelihood of “heavy rains that usually occur only in the summer months,” Yin Zhijie, in charge of hydrological forecasting at China’s Ministry of Water Resources, told national radio last month.
Publisher: GM
