One dead, 7 missing in central China highway landslide

Six people were found alive and injuries were reported from Saturday's landslide, officials in Hubei province said in a post on the province's WeChat account, adding they were trying to prevent other disasters in the area as operations continued.

China's ministry of emergency management activated a level-four emergency response and sent a working group to the site to guide emergency handling, according to a WeChat post.

The minister of emergency management urged authorities to find out what caused the landslide.

Torrential rains in parts of China over several weeks have led to a number of deadly landslides. Last month in Sichuan province, 19 people were killed in a landslide at a mine, and four died when heavy rainfall in a short period caused landslides.

China's government has issued advisories about rain and other natural disasters for local governments to stay alert and respond quickly.