By IANS,
Beijing : At least 86 people were killed and 16 missing due to flood and landslides caused by rainstorms that lashed central and south China in the past few days.
Rainstorms in south China since early May have left at least 86 people dead and 16 missing, causing direct economic losses of almost 5.9 billion yuan ($864 million), said the ministry of civil affairs.
The toll in central China’s Hunan Province has reached 12, Xinhua reported quoting the provincial flood-control relief authorities.
About 42,000 people were relocated to safe areas over the past day as the rainstorms lashed more than 280 townships in Hunan since Wednesday, it said.
The rainstorms damaged 10,200 hectares of crops and destroyed 480 residential buildings in the county, said Zhou Shengqi, publicity officer of Xupu.
Heavy rains were expected to continue in Hunan for the next five days and neighbouring Guangdong province for the next two days, provincial meteorological authorities said.