China landslide: Dozens missing as dirt buries buildings in Shenzhen and 900 people are evacuated

At least 27 are missing after buildings collapsed and soil covered a 20,000 square metre area

Some 22 buildings collapsed after a landslide in Shenzhen's industrial park on Sunday morning (AP)

Dozens were declared missing and more than 900 people evacuated after a landslide crashed into a Chinese industrial park, destroying 22 buildings.

The rescue operation in the major southern city of Shenzhen involved nearly 1,500 people, after an area of 20,000 square metres was covered with soil.

State media reported that at least 27 people have been declared missing, as rescue teams are looking for survivors and releasing people trapped under gravel. Four people had been pulled out from the debris as of late on Sunday, local time.

The landslide struck Shenzhen's Liuxi Industrial Park in the north west of the city on Sunday morning, burying 22 buildings and involving 15 companies.

State broadcaster CCTV said there was a residential area next to the industrial zone and two workers’ dormitories were among the buildings affected.

Ren Jiguang, the deputy chief of Shenzhen's public security bureau, told CCTV that most people had been moved to safety before the landslide hit.

According to reports from the scene in The Beijing Youth Daily, the soil that came loose had been dug up in the past two years in construction work, and was piled up nearby.

State media broadcasted photos of a building partly crumpled in the industrial park and a sea of brown soil covering a vast area.