Chongqing Landslide: 30 Confirmed Dead as Rescue Teams Enter Final Phase
A catastrophic landslide that struck Pengshui County in Chongqing Municipality has claimed at least 30 lives, with search and rescue operations now entering their final critical phase, according to Chinese authorities. The disaster, which occurred on the morning of July 17 at Hanjia Street, buried multiple residential buildings and a passenger bus under tons of debris.
Context
The landslide struck on the morning of July 17 in Hanjia Street, Pengshui County — an autonomous region for the Miao and Tujia ethnic minorities located in southeastern Chongqing within the Wuling Mountain range. As Lianhe Zaobao reported, a large-scale mountain collapse buried multiple residential buildings and a passenger bus carrying several people, triggering an immediate emergency response.
Pengshui County’s mountainous terrain has long made it vulnerable to geological disasters, particularly during the summer monsoon season. The broader Sichuan-Chongqing region has experienced similar devastating events, including a 2009 landslide in Wulong County that killed at least 26 people.
Rescue Operations and Escalating Toll
In the immediate aftermath, rescue teams faced formidable challenges. Massive boulders at the scene required multiple rounds of rock blasting to safely access buried areas, according to a Xinhua News report on July 24. Professional rescue teams and heavy equipment were deployed for round-the-clock operations.
On July 23, search operations entered a deep-search phase, with the disaster zone divided into four sectors designated A, B, C, and D. By the evening of July 24, three additional victims had been recovered through the intensified search efforts.
By the evening of July 28, the cumulative confirmed death toll had risen to 30. According to the Xinhua News Agency, rescue teams have been operating continuously around the clock, following the principle of “not missing one spot, leaving no blind spots,” conducting repeated checks and advancing layer by layer.
The Pengshui Landslide Rescue Headquarters confirmed that Zones A and B have been fully searched. Zones C and D are now in the final critical stage of the search operation, with some DNA test results from recovered remains still pending.
Official Statements
Xinhua correspondent Zhou Wentao reported from the scene that professional rescue forces have maintained 24-hour continuous operations, systematically expanding multiple search fronts. The July 24 report noted that after the completion of multiple rounds of rock blasting, the risk of secondary disasters at the site had been significantly reduced, allowing rescue teams to broaden their search operations.
Analysis and Implications
The escalating death toll — from three confirmed on July 24 to 30 by July 28 — underscores the severity of the disaster. The use of DNA testing to identify victims suggests that remains were severely fragmented, a reflection of the immense force of the landslide. The fact that the disaster struck a populated urban area during morning rush hours, burying both homes and a passenger bus, indicates the scale of destruction was particularly high.
The four-zone search designation and the need for extensive rock blasting demonstrate the complexity of the rescue operation. These factors, combined with the mountainous terrain of Pengshui County, have made this one of the most significant geological disasters in Chongqing in recent years.
What’s Next
With Zones C and D still being searched and DNA results pending, authorities caution that the final death toll may yet rise. The immediate priority remains locating any remaining victims and providing support to affected families. In the longer term, the disaster is likely to prompt renewed geological hazard assessments across Chongqing’s mountainous regions, as well as potential infrastructure reviews and community relocation plans for vulnerable areas.
Questions remain about the precise cause of the landslide — whether triggered by heavy rainfall, geological instability, or other factors — and whether early warning systems were in place at the time of the disaster. Authorities have not yet released figures on the number of injured survivors or the total number of people unaccounted for during the initial response.
Sources: Xinhua News Agency, Lianhe Zaobao