BEIJING, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- China has deployed 726 troops as of Thursday to mudslide-hit Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border in Xizang Autonomous Region for disaster relief missions, a defense spokesperson said on Friday.

Rescuers prepare to fly a drone to inspect the mudslide-hit areas, in Xigaze, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Aug. 27, 2026. (File photo: Xinhua)

The fast-moving chain mudslide, triggered by a high-altitude glacier collapse in Nepal on Aug. 26, has killed 21 people while 541 others remain missing, according to local authorities in Xizang.

Jiang Bin, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, said the Chinese People's Liberation Army and the Chinese People's Armed Police Force also dispatched 24 engineering vehicles and over 20 sorties of helicopters and drones to the disaster zone.

The military has been actively conducting search-and-rescue, road clearance, transport, and epidemic prevention operations, Jiang said at a press conference, noting troops providing medical care to local residents and rescue personnel more than 900 times.

The military will "race against time to search for the missing and minimize casualties," Jiang said.

China has sent over 2,300 rescuers, and the land route to Gyirong Port was basically restored on Wednesday morning.

On Thursday, another batch of Chinese relief supplies and DNA experts arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal, by air, as part of Chinese aid efforts following the deadly mudslide.