Extreme Weather, 20 Ultramarathon Participants In China Killed

Search and rescue teams search for missing participants at the Yellow River Stone tourist forest site in Jingtai, Baiyin City, Gansu Province, China. (Source: Xinhua)

JAKARTA - At least 20 people were killed when extreme extreme cold weather struck during an ultramarathon on Saturday, May 22 in Gansu Province, China, local officials said Sunday.

"Eight people were lightly injured at 8am Beijing time (00:00 GMT) on Sunday," an official from Baiyin City said at a press conference, as reported by Reuters Sunday, May 23.

The 100 km (62 mile) cross-country race was held on Saturday morning in the Yellow River Stone Forest, a scenic tourist site in the Jingtai area under the jurisdiction of Baiyin, China.

"Around midday hail, freezing rain and strong winds hit the mountainous part of the race site, with temperatures dropping sharply, local authorities said.

"Landslides after bad weather also hampered rescue work," baiyin officials added.

A total of 172 people participated in the race. As of Sunday, 151 participants had been confirmed safe, including the injured, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

"More than 700 rescuers have been deployed by the local government. One runner is missing," officials said.

The terrain and topography of the complex mining area, as well as the temperature of the air at night that drops, are said to have contributed to the search and rescue conducted by the SAR Team requiring extra ipaya.