Forty-seven people were buried in a landslide, with eight reported dead, in south-western Yunnan province, Chinese state media reported. China Central Television said on Monday that about 18 households were buried, and more than 200 people evacuated. Authorities launched an emergency response involving more than 200 rescue workers as well as dozens of fire engines and other equipment, CCTV added. Eight people were found without vital signs, according to the broadcaster. Landslides are common in Yunnan, where steep mountain ranges butt against the Himalayan plateau. The disaster occurred in a rural area surrounded by towering snowy peaks. Temperatures in Zhenxiong hovered at about -4C on Monday morning. Online footage from a local broadcaster showed emergency workers in orange jumpsuits and helmets picking through piles of collapsed masonry. There was no immediate official explanation of the cause of the landslide. On Monday, an earthquake of magnitude 4.8 hit the north-western region of Xinjiang, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center. It struck Aksu, a prefecture with 2.7 million inhabitants. China has experienced a string of natural disasters in recent months, some after extreme weather events such as sudden heavy downpours. In September, rainstorms in the southern region of Guangxi triggered a mountain landslide that killed at least seven people, according to media reports. Heavy rains sparked a similar disaster near the northern city of Xi’an in August, killing more than 20 people. In June, a landslide in south-western Sichuan province – also remote and mountainous – killed 19 people.