Nine confirmed dead in central China landslide

Nine people have been confirmed dead, and 19 others are injured after a rain-triggered mudslide swept through part of a village in central China’s Hunan Province.

The mudslide occurred about 4 p.m. Saturday in Zuta Village, Ningxiang County, after continuous heavy rain since Friday, according to the county government.

A four-day search and rescue operation recovered nine bodies, the government said Tuesday.

Southern China has been battered by continuous rain over recent weeks. China’s Finance Ministry on Monday released 1.9 billion yuan (about 280 million U.S. dollars) in emergency funds for flood relief in south China.

The funds will go to 20 provinces and autonomous regions including Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi and Zhejiang, where torrential rains in the past week have caused severe floods.