Three tourists are being investigated for causing damage to a valuable tourist spot in eastern China's Jiangxi Province, local authorities said.

The suspects from neighboring Zhejiang Province drill holes in a 128-meter-tall rock on Sanqingshan Mountain, a world natural heritage site, and used ropes to climb to the top of the rock on April 15, according to the site's administration committee. They also refused to listen to staff guidance at the site.

The rock, known as the "Giant Python of the Mountain," is of scientific and aesthetic significance after more than 300 million years of geological evolution, but has poor stability and is only 7 meters in diameter at the thinnest part.

Geological experts found that the rock had sustained damage from the tourists' drilling.

Further investigation is underway.

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