Twelve people are dead and 31 others missing following a partial highway bridge collapse in northwest China amid torrential rains.

State-run China Central Television reported that multiple vehicles fell into the river below when the bridge in Shangluo, Shaanxi Province, collapsed on Friday.

CCTV footage shows part of the bridge in a mountainous area crumbling into the river's muddy water.

The report said seven vehicles had been found by Saturday noon. Authorities are continuing search and rescue operations.

Chinese President Xi Jinping instructed officials to make all-out efforts to rescue the missing and prevent secondary disasters.

Heavy rain has been falling in Shaanxi since the middle of this month. Five people had been confirmed dead in another area as of Thursday.

In neighboring Sichuan Province, about 30 people were reported missing early Saturday morning after several buildings were hit by landslides triggered by downpours in a mountainous area.

Chinese weather officials are calling on people in inland areas to be on the alert for localized heavy rain. They are also warning that winds and rains could pick up as a tropical depression in the country's south moves north.