Three people died in Yongxing county, Hunan province, after they were washed away by a mudslide caused by torrential rain, according to China Central Television.
At 6 am on Saturday, Yongxing's Dongkeng village received heavy rain, which blocked roads and caused a mountain flood and power outages.
A village official named Zheng and two other villagers went to the mountains to check on their fellow villagers.
At around 11 am, villagers were reported missing, prompting search and rescue efforts. The bodies of the missing were found on Monday morning.
An initial investigation showed that sudden mudslides had washed them away.