Storms pound China
2005-06-17 14:28
Beijing - At least eight people were killed and hundreds injured when a hurricane and hailstorms whipped through parts of China, destroying nearly 200 000 homes, state media reported on Friday.
The worst-hit province was Jiangsu in China's east where seven were killed and "several hundred" injured when torrential rains and hail accompanied a hurricane on Tuesday night, Xinhua news agency said.
The affected areas included Shuyang, Siyang, Huai'an and Xuzhou.
According to Shuyang deputy head Sun Shujin, 825 000 people in his county were affected, with 223 injured and five dead.
The hurricane toppled trees and destroyed 194 487 houses, Xinhua said.
Power and telecommunications infrastructure was also badly hit, although they have now been restored.
A deadly hailstorm also pounded Guzhen county in the eastern province of Anhui, which borders Jiangsu, killing one person and injuring 65 others when it swept through on Wednesday morning, Xinhua said in a separate report.
The storm toppled or damaged 36 800 houses and destroyed cotton, vegetable, water melon, tobacco and other crops, inflicting million of dollars in economic losses.
Thousands of people perish every year from floods, landslides and mudflows in China, with millions left homeless. Officials have said this year's floods could be worse than usual.
According to earlier figures, at least 255 people have been killed in floods and storms since last month, which marked the start of the rainy season.
These numbers did not include the 103, mostly children, who died when a mountain torrent swamped the Shalan Township Central Elementary School in Heilongjiang province last Friday.
- AFP