Chongqing – A mountainside collapse struck a residential area in Pengshui, Chongqing, at 9:08 a.m. on July 17, destroying several buildings and leaving dozens of residents missing. The landslide occurred in Hanjia Subdistrict along the Wujiang River, with experts estimating the collapsed area measured about 60 meters long, 30 meters high and 10 meters thick, totaling around 18,000 cubic meters.

Chinese President Xi Jinping instructed authorities to organize the search scientifically, prevent secondary disasters, treat the injured, properly handle resettlement, and carry out follow-up work. Premier Li Qiang called for full support for rescue operations, medical treatment and accommodation for affected residents.

Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing traveled to the scene with officials from relevant central government departments. Yuan Jiajun, Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Chongqing Municipal Committee, directed the initial response by video before arriving in Pengshui later that day to coordinate operations.

Rescuers carry out emergency operations at the site of a landslide in Hanjia Subdistrict, Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County, Chongqing, on July 18, 2026. (Photo/Long Fan)

Li Li, head of a geological disaster expert team from the Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources, said that newly exposed rock masses fractured and rapidly released accumulated energy.

"Large rock masses fell directly from the steep slope," Li said. "It happened very quickly and with great force."

Before the collapse, they raced to save residents

Before the collapse, neighborhood workers had already begun evacuating residents.

At around 7:40 a.m., a local resident noticed signs of slope instability behind buildings No. 25 to 33 on Hualang Road, with loose soil and falling rocks. The resident recorded the situation and reported it to the community.

After receiving the alert, the local community party secretary dispatched four grassroots workers to check the site. As they approached the buildings, they heard rocks striking metal awnings and quickly urged residents to evacuate. “Evacuate immediately. Everyone must leave now,” one worker shouted.

The workers went floor by floor, knocking on doors and guiding residents to safety. They later noticed people were still too close to the unstable slope and urged them to move farther away.

Some residents initially hesitated because they wanted to retrieve belongings. Neighbors urged them to leave, telling them that property could be replaced but lives could not.

More than 60 people in the central risk zone had been evacuated before the mountainside collapsed. One of the grassroots workers was knocked unconscious by flying debris and the pressure wave, while several residents and workers remained missing after the collapse.

An aerial view shows rescuers conducting emergency operations at the site of a landslide in Hanjia Subdistrict, Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County, Chongqing, on July 18, 2026. (Photo/Yin Shiyu)

“No one retreated”: rescuers rushed forward

Pengshui activated a Level I geological-disaster emergency response and initially deployed more than 200 local personnel from emergency management, firefighting, police, health and natural-resources departments, along with 40 sets of rescue equipment.

Municipal authorities later dispatched 13 specialist teams and 683 rescuers. The overall operation expanded to 872 personnel and more than 1,100 pieces of rescue equipment, including engineering machinery, drones, life-detection systems and monitoring devices.

Emergency personnel install slope-monitoring radar at a high point across from the landslide site in Hanjia Subdistrict, Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County, Chongqing, on July 18, 2026. (Photo/Long Fan)

Police special forces located a man in his 30s trapped beneath building debris. Rescuers first used support equipment to stabilize loose walls and stones before digging through soil and broken masonry by hand.

“No one retreated. Everyone moved forward,” said Tian Weichuan, head of the Pengshui police special forces unit. The injured worker was later taken to hospital, with vital signs remaining stable.

On July 18, search dogs entered the highest-risk area. One dog repeatedly alerted near a yellow sofa in the rubble. Rescue teams then used life-detection radar and high-precision sensors, which identified continuous signs of life between 1.5 and 3 meters below the surface.

Rescuers did not immediately excavate the location because large suspended rocks remained overhead and slope radar had detected slight movement. The command center developed a staged plan intended to protect both trapped survivors and rescue personnel.

Drones mapped the debris field, while different detection devices scanned sections of the site. Heavy machinery removed upper layers of collapsed material, followed by teams conducting more precise manual searches.

Authorities also established three-dimensional monitoring across the upper, middle and lower sections of the slope. Ground-crack instruments and satellite-based monitors tracked deformation above the site, while robotic total stations and slope radar operated from across the Wujiang River. Drones continued inspecting the affected area for signs of further collapse.

According to the latest figures, 18 trapped people had been located. Ten were taken to hospital, including one who was later discharged. Five sustained minor injuries, two were seriously injured, and two were critically injured. Officials said those still receiving treatment had stable vital signs and were not in immediate danger.

Eight people died despite medical treatment, while 34 remained missing.

Authorities expanded the evacuation zone to a one-kilometer radius, relocating more than 1,100 residents to safety. Community staff checked on displaced families individually, ensuring they had accommodation, meals and medical support, including one six-member family moved to a hotel with food and water provided.

Chongqing launched expanded geological risk inspections after the Pengshui landslide. By noon on July 18, 150 national- and municipal-level experts had been sent to Pengshui, while grassroots workers and monitors completed 5,548 field deployments and checked 5,602 known hazard sites and high-risk areas.