24 People Died in a Highway Collapse in China:
The incident’s cause has not yet been disclosed by the authorities. Pictures on official media displayed a huge rift in the mountainside covered in trees beneath the highway. According to state media, the 30 patients in the hospital are “not currently at risk”.
There are 500 emergency response personnel on the scene, according to the provincial government. At first, state media said that 19 people had died, but local authorities later stated that 24 people had died and 30 more had been injured.
Black smoke and flames could be seen rising from beneath the highway in footage that looked to have been taken not long after the structure collapsed.
Authorities said that a total of 20 cars crashed into the section of the road that had collapsed. A second video that was aired by state media featured a partially mud-covered, smoking pile of burned cars.
The most populous province in China, Guangdong, experienced flash floods last week that left 110,000 people without a place to live and four people dead. In addition, the floods closed schools, damaged dozens of homes, and delayed and cancelled flights.
Economic losses of 140.6 million yuan ($19.4 million; £15.5 million) have been estimated by authorities. Over the weekend, more extreme weather was forecast. A tornado devastated a factory district in Guangzhou, the provincial capital, killing five and injuring thirty-three. There were also sightings of golf-ball-sized hail falling on the city.
