Nine killed as heavy rains, landslides hit China’s coastal provinces

BEIJING: Torrential rain and landslides in China’s coastal provinces of Guangdong and Fujian have killed nine people and left 17 missing, state media and local authorities said on Monday.

In Guangdong, five people were killed, 15 missing and 13 trapped as of Monday, local emergency management authorities said.

Sishui, a town in the province, logged 369.3 millimetres of precipitation in 24 hours. The deluge prompted officials to raise emergency response levels, and dispatch helicopters to evacuate and deliver supplies to those affected.

Also read: Parachinar welcomes rain, doubling the joy of Eid festivities

Four people died and two went missing in neighbouring Fujian due to rainstorms that the provincial meteorological bureau classified as an “extreme event”, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Downpours in Fujian’s Wuping county since Sunday afternoon had caused 378 homes to collapse and prompted authorities to launch an emergency flood response.

Over the past few days, heavy rains have inundated the province, breaking a historical record in Wuping county. Economic losses in the county totalled 415 million yuan ($57.19 million), state media reported.

Many parts of southern China have been impacted by rains over the past few days, prompting several localities to issue flood warnings and advisories.

In Jiangxi province, the average rainfall was 24 mm between from 8 a.m. Sunday and 8 a.m. Monday, with 288 weather stations in 56 counties recording considerable precipitation, state media said.

In Chongqing, torrential rains caused water levels of five rivers to rise by 1 to 3 meters, according to CCTV.