2 Killed, 21 Missing in Sichuan Landslide

Flooding triggered by the rain caused havoc on the Dujiangyan-Wenchuan Expressway, with hundreds of people stranded in the Taoguan Tunnel.

Hao Xuenan, an information officer with the Sichuan provincial government, said, "As communication has been cut off since 10:00 AM , rescuers don't know the situation."

Hao said floods have affected 480,000 people in Sichuan and 30,000 have been evacuated.

Sichuan Governor Wei Hong headed for Sanxi to direct rescue operations.

Wang Zhongcheng, a provincial information officer, said, "As the road leading to Sanxi was damaged, the governor had to walk for half an hour to reach the scene of the landslide."

Three bridges collapsed in Sichuan as rivers swelled.

At 11:50 AM on Tuesday, the old Qinglian Bridge on the Fujiang River in Jiangyou collapsed. Twelve people and six vehicles remain missing.

The Niubizi Bridge and Xilong-Gongxing Bridge in Mianzhu city also collapsed. "Fortunately, no casualties were reported," said He Xiongfei, an information officer in Mianzhu.

Early on Tuesday morning, a barge hit a pier on the Qingbaijiang Bridge on the Chengdu section of the Baoji-Chengdu Railway, damaging the bridge.

"Trains are now passing at a reduced speed of 45 kilometers per hour. Workers will repair the bridge after the floods recede," said Xia Yongjing, an information officer with Chengdu Railway Bureau.

Gao Chengxiang, a young tourist from Beijing, was happy to be on a flight bound for the capital from Chengdu's Shuangliu International Airport at noon on Wednesday. All 3,000 passengers stranded at the airport on Tuesday left on Wednesday morning.

Lu Junming, an information officer at the airport, said, "When the rainstorm became more severe, 85 flights were delayed with 17,000 passengers stranded on Wednesday afternoon."