By An Puzhong, Miao Peng
BEIJING, Mar. 21 (ChinaMil) --At 18: 00 on March 15, a landslide occurred on the north side of the Sanitation Hospital of Zaoling Township, Xiangning County, Shanxi Province, causing the collapse of two residential buildings and a small bath place.
Shanxi Provincial Military Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) immediately initiated contingency measures at the news. They dispatched a Shanxi Earthquake Rescue Team assigned to the Department of People's Armed Forces at Wanbo Forest Region, Taiyuan City, as well as the militias assigned to the Linfen Military Sub-command to participate in the rescue operations without delay, carrying more than 300 sets of professional rescue tools and equipment.
The disaster site is filled with dirt and has very poor visual conditions. To be even worse，the landslide has a visual drop of more than 50 meters and several buildings have collapsed completely, except for the integrity of one residential building. The deep and steep slope made the surface for rescue operations very narrow and unable to use large equipment.
The rescuers used life detector, geographic survey instrument and other professional rescue tools to carry out life detection in the whole region. When a survivor was found, rescuers were often required to operate by hand using breaking or cutting equipments. So the rescue forces were grouped and operated in turn to ensure uninterrupted operations. Some rescuers were scratched by exposed steel bars or injured in the feet by uneven stones, but all of them persisted. According to Xiangning "315" Mountain Landslide Rescue Headquarters, by the time of March 20, 19 people were killed and 1 person was still missing. Emergency rescue is still in full swing.
