A hillside is in the process of splitting open near a construction site for the outer superhighway in Chongqing City, causing 109 neighboring residents to be evacuated from their homes, the Chongqing Morning Post reported on December 24.

The slope may collapse if the rift keeps widening at the current two to three centimeters per hour, the newspaper reported. Situated at the outlying Yinglong Town belonging to the city's urban Nan'an District, the hillside is 200 meters long and 90 meters wide.

The rift, surrounded by security lines, expanded to 1.8 meters at its widest point by December 23, Chongqing Morning Post reported.

Almost a week ago, Mo Liangping, a Yinglong native, discovered that the slope had started to crack open two to three centimeters while digging sweet potatoes on the hill. By December 22, the rift had expanded to 60 centimeters. In fear of disastrous damage, Mo rushed down the hill and informed local policemen who later evacuated the residents around the slope to neighboring villages.

The rift, surrounded by security lines, expanded to 1.8 meters at its widest point by December 23, the newspaper reported. "It is really rare to see such a big crack in the rock layer," said Ren Qiang, a surveyor from the China Nuclear Industry Changsha Zhongnan Construction Corp. The hill had moved forward one meter toward the construction site by December 23.

According to Deng Zhongcheng, the project manager from the Zhongnan Construction Corp., the split was caused by the low loading capacity of the layers in the hill. The company is conducting 24-hour surveillance of the slope in case of any emergencies, said Deng.

The planned outer superhighway connecting outlying towns around the city is scheduled for completion in 2009. The project kicked off in 2005 and aims to extend the entire length of the road to 186 kilometers.

(China.org.cn by Wu Jin, December 24, 2007)