9 killed due to floods, landslides in China

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOUTHERN China was reeling on Tuesday from heavy rains that triggered landslides killing at least nine people, knocking out power for entire villages and burying crops. Meanwhile, northern parts of the country are battling drought, as the country faces two extremes of severe weather. Four people were killed and two others were missing in Wuping county in the coastal province of Fujian due to landslides caused by torrential rain. Severe downpours started on Sunday afternoon, with authorities measuring 372.4 millimetres (14.7 inches) of rainfall over a 24-hour period.

 

At least 378 houses collapsed in the county, and 880 hectares (2,175 acres) of crops were damaged, amounting to economic losses of at least 415 million yuan (USD 57.2 million) in Wuping, authorities said, according to the official Xinhua news agency. In the southern Guangdong province, bordering Hong Kong, landslides triggered by severe flooding killed at least five people in the city of Meizhou. Fifteen others were missing. More than 130,000 households in Meizhou experienced power outages, with some neighbouring towns and villages out of contact as of Monday.