China: Heavy flooding displaces over a million, kills dozens
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The Chinese government has said that severe seasonal flooding in the country has displaced over a million people and killed at least 155. According to the Office of Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, the southeastern parts of China were hit the worst. 1.3 million people were forced to temporary shelters after 140,000 homes collapsed, mostly in the provinces of Hunan and Jiangxi. The office reports that direct economic losses from the disaster has reached 24 billion yuan, or about US$6.5 billion, and that the figure is 370% higher
The Chinese government has said that severe seasonal flooding in the country has displaced over a million people and killed at least 155.
According to the Office of Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, the southeastern parts of China were hit the worst. 1.3 million people were forced to temporary shelters after 140,000 homes collapsed, mostly in the provinces of Hunan and Jiangxi.
The office reports that direct economic losses from the disaster has reached 24 billion yuan, or about US$6.5 billion, and that the figure is 370% higher than the damage caused by last year's seasonal rains.
The rainy season in eastern China is in June through August; flooding is frequent, and causes mudslides and deaths. This year, however, rainfall totals appear to be the highest they have been in over ten years.
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Licensed archive reporting by Wikinews contributors. Text: CC BY 2.5 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/). Original source date retained. 411 has not independently verified this archive report.
Read the source: Wikinews ↗Source published 14 Jun 2010, 05:30 am IST
