Death toll rises to 24 after highway collapses in China’s rain-hit Guangdong province
- Dozens in hospital as early hours collapse on Wednesday leaves nearly 18-metre-long crater on highway linking Guangdong to Fujian province
- Accident on first day of long Labour Day holiday is the latest tragedy to hit Guangdong, which has been battling killer floods and tornadoes for weeks
The cave-in happened around 2am in Dabu county of Guangdong’s northern Meizhou city. Nearly 18 metres (59 feet) of the mountainous Meizhou-Dabu highway crumbled into the forested slope below, sending vehicles tumbling down.
In all, 20 vehicles and 54 passengers were caught up in the accident, the local government said, as it issued revised casualty figures on Wednesday afternoon. It had earlier said 18 vehicles and about 50 passengers were affected.
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Dozens killed in highway collapse in China’s rain-hit Guangdong province
In a statement, it said 30 victims had been sent to hospital, while around 500 public security, emergency response, firefighting, health and sanitation and other workers were taking part in the rescue work in the affected area measuring around 184 sq m.
The condition of the hospitalised patients was “not life-threatening at the moment”, the statement said, but did not specify the extent of their injuries.
The reason for the collapse has yet to be declared and the matter is under investigation.
The accident occurred as China began a five-day break for Labour Day, one of the four major holiday and travel periods for the country when highways are toll-free and see heavy traffic.
The others are Lunar New Year, called Spring Festival in China, the Tomb Sweeping Festival and National Day in October.
