Hundreds of rescuers are searching for the six Russian tourists who were reported missing after they embarked on a canoeing trip in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region late last month, local authorities said on Saturday.

Thirty-two armed police and 560 farmers and herdsmen from several counties in southern Xinjiang's Hotan Prefecture are searching the areas along both banks of the Yurungkax River where the missing Russian tourists had begun their expedition, according to the Hotan Prefectural Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

An official in charge of the searching operation said the rescuers' task would be more difficult as the group had traveled to remote Kunlun mountain range with an elevation of up to 6,000 meters.

Two local villagers, Itaman and Ahman, from Pulu Village in Hotan's Yutian County, who served as guides for the six Russians, had turned up and recalled their journey with the six Russians.

The six Russians hired eight donkeys from their village at 10,000 yuan (about 1,250 US dollars) for carrying luggage, and set out in the morning of Aug. 14, but reached the river bank at 6 p.m. on Aug. 19.

The two guides returned to their village on Aug. 22.

In separate news item filed on Friday, there was an obvious wrong interpretation that the two local guides also accompanied the six Russians in canoeing.

Zhang Hong, the local Russian-language interpreter who is based in Urumqi, said he had not any contact with the six Russians.

"The six Russians were introduced to me by a Russian friend of mine and arrived in Hotan in mid-August with the aim of canoeing along the upper reaches of the Yurunkax River," said Zhang.

According to Zhang's account, the six Russians flew to Urumqi, regional capital of Xinjiang, on Aug. 11. Led by Zhang, the six tourists then flew to Hotan and later arrived by bus in Pulu Village, Yutian County, where the Yurungkax River originates.

In addition to hiring two villagers as their guides, the six Russians also rented eight donkeys to help carry daily necessities weighing about 400 kg, including food, medicine, a GPS system and tents.

Zhang returned to Urumqi for business on Aug. 14.

According to the original plan, the expedition team would arrive at the banks of the Yurungkax River that flows through Hotan on Aug. 20, start canoeing the next day toward Cele and finish at Kashitashi Township in Hotan County, 30 km from Hotan City, in order to meet Zhang.

However, the six Russians failed to show up on Sept. 2 as agreed. Zhang then informed his Russian friend of the situation two days later, who passed on the news to the relatives of the tourists.

Zhang reported to the local tourism department in Hotan after relatives of one of the Russians phoned Zhang twice to request an immediate search operation.

The six Russians were identified as Vladimir Smetannikov, Sergey Chernik, Andrey Pautov, Dmitry Tishchenko, Ivan Chernik and Alexander Zverev, with the youngest aged 25 and the oldest 47.

(Xinhua News Agency September 9, 2007)