Death toll in China quake nears 12,000

DUJIANGYAN, China - Rescue workers are digging through flattened homes and schools in a desperate search for victims of China's worst earthquake in three decades. Authorities say nearly 12,000 people were killed and more than 18,000 are missing.

The official Xinhua News Agency says Chinese rescue workers report that 18,645 people remain buried under debris in Mianyang city. Mianyang neighbors the epicenter of Monday's massive, 7.9-magnitude quake.

Xinhua said that 3,629 people have been confirmed dead in Mianyang. It was not clear if those figures are included in the official death toll of 11,921 so far.