Heavy rains in China affect 8 lakh people, cause huge damage

Torrential rains have battered several provinces in China, killing at least 10 persons and affecting some 8 lakh others besides causing heavy economic losses and toppling hundreds of homes.
In the central province of Hunan, days of heavy rain have affected about 5,00,000 residents in 25 counties, with about 18,000 evacuated and 4,000 in need of emergency supplies, according to the provincial flood and drought relief headquarters.
The rainstorms have also damaged 46,000 hectares of crops, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
In south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, two persons have died and 290,000 people in 16 counties have been affected by heavy rain.

Rainstorms battered Guangxi's north and east, forcing more than 12,000 people to evacuate, according to the regional department of civil affairs.
The disaster has affected some 17,460 hectares of crops and toppled 610 houses, causing a direct economic loss of 470 million yuan (USD 72 million).

The heavy rain also disrupted traffic on 41 highways and damaged irrigation projects worth more than 100 million yuan.
Meanwhile, a city in south China's Guangdong Province was hit by its heaviest round of rain in more than 200 years.
Xinyi, in Maoming, saw 429.5 mm of rain in just six hours, according to the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters.

Eight persons died and four others were reported missing in the city.