TAIPEI, Taiwan — At least 11 people have been killed and 30 are missing after severe storms and floods caused a partial collapse of a highway bridge in the country’s northwest, Chinese authorities said, while an equal number of people are missing in the southwest after storms destroyed dozens of homes.
The official Xinhua News Agency reported that five vehicles had been retrieved after a bridge in Shaanxi province collapsed at about 8:40 pm on Friday. Photos released by Xinhua showed part of the bridge breaking off at a nearly 90-degree angle, falling into the brown water below.
Rescue operations were continuing on Saturday in the province’s Tuoshui county, with around 20 vehicles and 30 people still missing, the ministry said.
Floods and storms left an estimated 30 people missing and about 40 homes destroyed in the southwestern province of Sichuan, Xinhua said. Roads, bridges and communication networks were damaged or down in the worst-hit county of Hanyuan, and rescuers had been working since before dawn to restore communications and transport links.
As China’s economy has grown rapidly in recent decades, it has built a vast network of highways, high-speed rail and airports, many of which have helped fuel further growth.
But a dramatic decline in economic growth, poor infrastructure, inadequate safety oversight and an industry eager to cut corners to reduce costs have led to a string of deadly accidents.
China’s western and southwestern provinces are particularly prone to floods and landslides because of their mountainous terrain and powerful rivers. Mining, tourism and urbanization are also upsetting the fragile balance that has maintained the natural environment for millennia.
Shaanxi province is best known as one of the centres of Chinese civilisation, the birthplace of the First Emperor of Qin, the Yellow Emperor, who left behind a legacy of the famous Terracotta Army as part of a vast mausoleum outside the capital, Xi’an, which attracts huge numbers of tourists every year.
