"The death toll from the landslides in southwest China's Guizhou Province on Thursday has risen to four while 17 people remain trapped, the provincial government said," state news agency Xinhua reported.

Two landslides occurred in separate parts of Dafang county, the first at around 3:00 am (1900 GMT Wednesday) and another at 9:00 am, state broadcaster CCTV said.

"Two separate landslides struck Changshi and Guowa townships in Dafang County under the city of Bijie on the same day, trapping two and 19, respectively," Xinhua reported.

Aerial footage by the broadcaster showed a village inundated by brown mud that blanketed farming fields and pooled at the foot of a densely forested mountain.

Guizhou activated a Level II emergency response for geological disasters and China's Ministry of Natural Resources dispatched a team to the area to guide rescue operations.

The emergency management ministry urged rescue teams to make "every possible effort" to recover the missing people.

However, it said the remote region was "high and steep" and that rescue efforts were proving "difficult".