Storm, floods kill 6 in Sichuan; 5 missing

The emergency management bureau of Ya'an, Sichuan province, announced on Tuesday afternoon that a rainstorm and subsequent floods had resulted in six deaths and left five others missing.

The six who died were from Lushan, a county under the administration of Ya'an. Three of the five missing people were from Yucheng district and two were from Baoxing county under Ya'an.

From Monday at 8 pm until 8 am on Tuesday, heavy rains lashed the area, swelling the main stream of the Qingyi River, as well as the Mingshan, Lushan and Baoxing rivers.

The Mingshan weather station measured average precipitation of 187 millimeters per hour during the storm. In addition, the Duoyingping weather station on the Qingyi recorded the flood peak at 4:45 am on Tuesday, with the water level 1.04 meters higher than emergency level.

After the storm, leading officials of Ya'an guided disaster relief and rescue operations, the bureau said.