GYIRONG, Xizang/CHENGDU – Three people had been killed, 558 others remained missing, while two local villagers had been rescued as of 8 am on Thursday, after a mudslide struck a port along the China-Nepal border in Southwest China's Xizang autonomous region, a local official said at a press conference.

The mudslide, which occurred on the Nepalese side, struck Gyirong Port in Gyirong county, Xizang, on Wednesday morning.

On Thursday morning, a directing group from the Western Theater Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) has been dispatched to coordinate joint rescue operations by military personnel in the county.

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Carried by the Y-20 transport aircraft of the western theater command, the group will organize military forces to assist in disaster relief efforts.

The command responded immediately following the disaster, mobilizing multiple rescue forces to the affected area to assist in road clearance, disaster assessment, search and rescue operations, and relocation of affected residents.

The team dispatched will assume unified command over PLA and Armed Police Force rescue units, with aviation, medical, transportation, and engineering corps fully prepared for timely operations when they are needed.