Anadolu staff
08 July 2026•Update: 08 July 2026
At least 21 people were killed and seven others injured after a landslide struck a village in China's northwestern Gansu province, state-run media reported Wednesday.
The incident took place in Tanchang county, where rescue operations have been completed.
The latest fatalities raised the death toll from floods, thunderstorms and landslides across China to 36 over the past two days, according to Xinhua News Agency.
The injured are receiving treatment at local hospitals.
The landslide struck Renzang village in Longnan city on Tuesday, trapping 33 people. Five people were rescued unharmed, according to the news agency.
Multiple rescue teams, including emergency, fire and police personnel, were deployed to the scene following the disaster.
Meteorologists said the annual flood season, which officially began on July 1, is being influenced by global warming and El Nino, warning that the country faces "complex" disaster prevention challenges this year, according to the South China Morning Post.
Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered "all-out" emergency rescue and relief efforts, medical treatment for the injured and resettlement for affected residents.
"All local governments should tighten accountability for disaster prevention and relief, thoroughly check rivers, lakes, reservoirs and other regions prone to geological disasters, strengthen early warning, prevention and relief work and ensure the safety of people’s lives and property," he said.
The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management on Wednesday allocated 50 million yuan (about $7.3 million) in disaster relief funds to support emergency rescue and relief efforts in central Hubei province and Gansu province following recent natural disasters, according to state broadcaster CGTN.
The funding comes in response to a tornado that struck Hubei and the landslide in Gansu.
Earlier, the country's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, allocated 50 million yuan to support emergency recovery efforts in Hubei.
Separately, a snake farm in Hengzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, reportedly collapsed during the flooding, allowing around 900 snakes to escape. Videos showing snakes in the floodwaters have since circulated widely on social media.
Most of the escaped snakes are not believed to be venomous, and authorities deployed a team of 10 people equipped with fishing nets and stun guns to capture them.
