Continuous downpours kill 88 in China's southern provinces

A total of 6.14 million people from eight provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities have been stricken by floods as intense rainfall has swept over China's southern regions since the beginning of June, according to the Ministry of Emergency Management.

As of 10 am Sunday, 88 people had died and 17 people were missing in Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing and Guizhou. Some 388,000 people have been relocated and 173,000 people are in need of living assistance; 17,000 buildings collapsed and 82,000 were damaged to a certain extent; 428,700 hectares of crops were harmed and 59,100 hectares were lost. Total direct economic losses are estimated to be 20.13 billion yuan.

To combat and minimize collateral damage, State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, the China National Commission for Disaster Reduction and Ministry of Emergency Management have worked together to assign five emergency teams to five separate provinces, all of which are responsible for assisting and guiding local authorities in work, including rescue operations and disaster prevention.

From 8 am on May 26 to 8 am Sunday, local fire departments have participated in more than 900 flood rescue operations with the assistance of more than 9,400 fire fighters and 1,100 boats. They have successfully rescued 5,060 trapped people, evacuated 14,542 trapped people, and protected 1.191 billion yuan worth of properties.