Rainstorm kills 8, affects 1.39m

Workers repair the railway line disrupted by landslide in Loudi, Central China's Hunan province, June 11, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - Torrential rains have ravaged Central China's Hunan province over the past several days, leaving eight dead and another seven missing, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said Monday.

Natural disasters caused by the downpours had affected nearly 1.39 million people in 49 counties in the province as of 4 pm Monday and forced the evacuation of 123,000 residents, the ministry said in a statement.

Provincial disaster relief and civil affairs authorities had initiated third-grade emergency response and sent two teams to the disaster-affected areas to direct relief work. The local government also allocated 4 million yuan (about $631,330) as relief fund.