Mudslide kills hundreds in China

Chinese rescuers are still trying to find survivors of the worst disaster in a year of heavy flooding.

A landslide in Zhouqu, in a narrow valley in Gansu province, jumped from 137 to 337, according to local officials.

That toll is sure to grow, with another 1,148 residents counted as missing and possibly buried under the mud and rocks that engulfed much of the town.

A debris-blocked swollen river burst, swamping entire mountain villages in the county of Zhouqu and ripping homes from their foundations.

"There were some, but very few, survivors. Most of them are dead, crushed into the earth," said survivor Guo Wentao. Shortly afterwards the bodies of his younger brother and sister, wrapped in quilts, were carried away.

More rain is expected in the region over the next three days, the China Meteorological Administration said. On Monday evening, clouds were building ominously over the mountains where the mud started flowing.