BEIJING, Aug 3, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - A landslide in southwest China caused a highway bridge to collapse, leaving at least five people missing, authorities said Saturday.

The local government of Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan province said the bridge linking two tunnels along the highway between Kangding and Luding "collapsed due to a sudden mountain torrent and landslide".

As of 11:00 am, officials had confirmed that at least three vehicles had plunged off the road, carrying six people of whom "one person has been rescued and five are missing", the government said in a social media post.

"At present, multiple rescue forces have arrived at the scene to carry out their work," the statement said.

Garze lies in a mountainous area at the foothills of the Himalayas and has a large Tibetan population.

China has seen a string of natural disasters this summer, many linked to extreme weather.

State media reported Friday that the death toll from another highway bridge collapse in northern Shaanxi province last month had risen from 12 to 38, with 24 still missing.

In May, a highway in southern China collapsed after days of rain, leaving 48 dead.

China is the world's largest emitter of the greenhouse gases that scientists say drive climate change and make extreme weather more intense.