Rescuers work at the landslide site in Yueshan village under Tujia autonomous county of Wufeng, central China's Hubei province, July 8, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

One person has died and seven were missing after a landslide struck a highway construction site on an expressway in Central China's Hubei province on Saturday, local authorities said on Sunday.

The landslide happened in a highway construction site in Wufeng county at 4 pm on Saturday. Six people have been rescued alive so far.

While 139 rescuers from the National Comprehensive Fire and Rescue Team have headed to the site, another team with expertise on workplace rescue has left for Wufeng to support the operation of local rescuers

The Ministry of Emergency Management has dispatched a work group to oversee the rescue mission.

The accident has triggered a level IV emergency response for geological disasters from the ministry, a media release from the ministry said on Sunday.

China has a four-tier emergency response system, with Level I representing the most severe response.

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While 139 rescuers from the National Comprehensive Fire and Rescue Team have headed to the site, another team with expertise on workplace rescue has left for Wufeng to support the operation of local rescuers, it said.

On receiving report about the accident, Wang Xiangxi, minister of emergency management, dispatched forces immediately to guide and assist local authorities in the search and rescue operations.

While sparing no efforts to treat the injured to minimize casualties, rescuers should also roll out measures to prevent secondary disasters to ensure their own safety, the minister stressed.

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He also asked to draw a lesson from the accident, strengthen risk monitoring and make intensified efforts to screen for hazards to ensure the safety of people's lives and property.