LUCHUAN, Nanning, June 30 (Xinhua) — Seven people were slightly injured after a landslide derailed a train carrying more than 1,000 passengers in south China early on Monday.

    The No.1322 train from Guangzhou to Chongqing was derailed at 2:20 a.m. at Luchuan County of Yulin City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, 90 kilometers from Nanning, the regional capital.

    The locomotive and six carriages came off the tracks.

    Four of the injured had been discharged from hospital as of 7 p.m. on Monday and the other three were being treated, said Shao Liping, head of the railway administration of Nanning.

    ”The train was carrying 1,118 passengers. The other passengers have all taken other trains to the southwestern municipality of Chongqing except for the three still in hospital,” said Shao.

    More than 1,000 rescuers are clearing the site, where an estimated 2,700 cubic meters of earth and rocks have covered the rails. However, the rescue operation was halted due to heavy rain.

    ”We have planned to first remove the derailed carriages with crane and clear the mud and rocks, and then have the deformed rail replaced, but we’re afraid that the rain may cause new landslides,” said Shao.

    According to the official, the south-north lane of the was expected to reopen to traffic on Monday night.

    The 317-kilometer line links Guangxi with Guangdong Province.