Aerial photo taken on July 21, 2020 shows the landslide site in Mazhe Village of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, central China's Hubei Province. (Photos: Xinhua)

WUHAN, July 21 (Xinhua) -- A landslide has blocked a river in central China's Hubei Province, forming a barrier lake that threatens nearby villages and the downstream city of Enshi, local authorities said Tuesday.

The barrier lake, caused by a massive landslide of 10 million cubic meters, was formed on the Qingjiang River, a tributary of Yangtze River, in the Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, at around 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday, said the flood control and drought relief headquarters of Enshi City.

Aerial photo taken on July 21, 2020 shows the landslide site in Mazhe Village of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, central China's Hubei Province. 

At 10:15 a.m., water from the upper reach broke through the top of the lake, discharging into the lower reach at a speed of 200 cubic meters per second, so that the risk of a dam breaking has eased.

As of 6 a.m. the same day, a massive body of 1.5 million cubic meters of earth has slid into the river, said Fu Qiang, an engineer with Hubei Geological Bureau at a press conference late Tuesday night.

Aerial photo taken on July 21, 2020 shows the landslide site in Mazhe Village of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, central China's Hubei Province. 

The landslide body is constantly changing, he said.

A total of 8,397 residents of 1,963 households from the affected area have been evacuated as of 3 p.m. Tuesday, said the mayor, Su Yong.