Two people died and 16 others went missing after a mudslide triggered by heavy rains occurred near the northern Chinese city of Xi’an, state media reported on Saturday.

China has faced deadly floods and historic rainfall in recent weeks, with the death toll from storms in the northern part of the country reaching at least 78 on Friday.

‘Affected by short-term local heavy rainfall, at 18:00 on August 11… there was a sudden mountain flash flood and mudslide,’ reported state broadcaster CCTV.

‘A preliminary inspection showed that, at present, two houses in the village have been washed away and infrastructure including roads, bridges and power supply have been damaged,’ said the report.

Four of the people initially trapped by the mudslide have been saved, CCTV added.

Chinese state media said emergency response and rescue efforts were continuing on Saturday morning as 16 individuals remained missing.

The flash floods occurred in the village of Weiziping, situated in a narrow ravine two hours south of Xi’an’s city centre.

Emergency management authorities in the city warned Saturday that the area would see ‘multiple rounds’ of heavy storms in the near future.

‘Coupled with continuous rainfall, mountains and soil will be highly saturated, likely leading to secondary disasters such as mountain flash floods and mudslides,’ the statement said.