At least 47 people have died as downpours in Guangdong, China, caused historic flooding and landslides, Chinese state media reported yesterday, while authorities warned of more extreme weather ahead in other parts of the country.
State broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) said that another 38 people were confirmed dead in a county under the jurisdiction of Meizhou, adding to nine others previously reported dead.
Heavy rains caused landslides, floods and mudslides that severely damaged eight townships in Pingyuan County, where the latest deaths were reported, CCTV said.
Photo: AFP
The heaviest rains were on Sunday, with an average rainfall of 199mm, and one town seeing 365.7mm. It is unclear from the report when the deaths occurred.
The extreme weather also destroyed about 356km of road, damaged more than a hundred bridges and flooded farmland.
The previous day, CCTV reported four deaths in Meizhou, and five in Jiaoling County.
The heaviest rains were from Sunday to Tuesday, toppling trees and collapsing homes. A road leading to Meizhou’s Meixian District completely collapsed during the heavy rains. The Songyuan River, which winds through Meizhou, experienced its biggest recorded flood, CCTV said.
The estimated direct economic loss is 3.65 billion yuan (US$502.7 million) in Jiaoling County, while in Meixian District, the loss is 1.06 billion yuan.
Other parts of the country yesterday were also facing torrential rains and extreme weather, with the Chinese National Meteorological Center issuing a warning for several provinces in the south and a few individual places in the north.
Henan and Anhui provinces in central China, as well as Jiangsu Province on the east coast and the southern province of Guizhou, were all expecting hail and strong thunderstorms, the center said.
Rainfall could be as high as 50mm to 80mm in one day in Henan, Anhui and Hubei provinces, it said.
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