A road in Nyingchi city in Southwest China's Xizang (Tibet) Autonomous Region Photo: IC

China's Ministry of Emergency Management sent a working group to Southwest China's Xizang (Tibet) Autonomous Region after an avalanche has caused eight deaths in the city of Nyingchi as of Wednesday evening. 

The avalanche happened on a section of road between Pai village in Mainling county and the exit of the Doxong La tunnel in Medog county at around 7 pm on Tuesday, with people and vehicles stranded, according to the Xinhua News Agency.  

So far, rescuers have recovered the bodies of eight people and the search for the missing is ongoing, with an unknown number of people potentially trapped. 

Local authorities have sent 131 people and 28 vehicles to the scene overnight. 

As of 5:30 pm on Wednesday, emergency rescue headquarters dispatched 246 rescuers, over 70 vehicles, 10 pieces of large-scale equipment and 994 search devices to excavate a rescue passage of 350 meters. 

Authorities from the Ministry of Emergency Management urged all-out efforts to carry out the rescue and verify the number of people and stranded vehicles as soon as possible, strengthen monitoring and early warning and transfer people to safety to prevent secondary disasters. 

Global Times