24 December, 2015
A 21-year-old man was pulled out alive Wednesday from the big landslide in southern China.
Tian Zeming had been buried in piles of debris for 67 hours, said Chinese officials. It took rescuers three hours to reach him.
Tian was weak and dehydrated when rescue workers found him, Chinese officials said. He told them his name and reported that another person was buried near him, Associated Press reported.
But medical staff and rescue workers said the second person did not survive.
Chinese officials said more than 70 people are missing after Sunday's landslide in Shenzhen. The landslide buried buildings under mud and construction debris.
The BBC reported that at least four bodies had been recovered by Wednesday afternoon. Chinese officials said 5,000 rescuers were working to find the missing people.
Doctors said that Tian, a migrant worker from Chongqing, suffered many broken bones and other injuries. They said his condition improved after three-hours of surgery.
The landslide occurred when a man-made mountain of earth and construction waste collapsed following heavy rains.
The Chinese government said it is investigating the disaster.
Government controlled news media reported the District Government near the landslide site had reported safety concerns months before Sunday's disaster.
I'm Mario Ritter.
Joyce Huang reported on this story for VOANews.com. Bruce Alpert adapted this story for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.
_____________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
pile – n. a group of things that are put one on top of another
debris – n. the pieces that are left after something has been destroyed
rescuer – n. someone who tries to rescue people from a disaster or other bad situation.
migrant – n. a person who goes from one place to another especially to find work
collapse – v. to break apart and fall down suddenly
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or share your views on testbig.com.