Wuhan, July 7 (IANS) Eight people were killed, and another remained missing after thunderstorms and gales brought by severe convective weather hit the eastern part of central China’s Hubei Province, according to the province’s emergency management authorities.
Between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Monday, thunderstorms and strong winds hit Huangshi, Huanggang, Ezhou, and Xianning, with two townships seeing gales reaching level 13. Some areas saw tornadoes, according to the local authorities.
Three communities in Huanggang City’s Huangzhou District have been severely battered by the latest round of convective weather, local rescue headquarters said Tuesday.
By 5 a.m. Tuesday, the severe weather had injured 275 people across the three communities. A total of 408 residents have been evacuated to safe places by subdistrict and community authorities, reports Xinhua news agency.
Rescue and relief efforts are underway.
Meanwhile, a landslide struck a township in Tanchang County, Longnan City, northwest China’s Gansu Province, early on Tuesday morning, leaving multiple people missing.
The landslide occurred at a village in Nanhe township at around 6:56 a.m., according to local authorities. A total of 33 people are believed to be buried, and 17 of them have been rescued.
All-out search and rescue operations are underway.
Earlier on Monday, two people were killed and about 55,000 others affected after torrential rains triggered flooding and breaches at several reservoirs in Nanning City.
A total of 48,000 people have been evacuated from the affected areas, according to the briefing by officials.
The casualties and evacuations came as Typhoon Maysak brought torrential rains to most parts of Nanning between 8 a.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. on Monday. Water levels at 59 rivers in Guangxi exceeded warning levels at 8 p.m. Monday.
Huang Lu, deputy head of the municipal emergency management bureau, said floodwaters in the affected areas showed signs of receding as of 8 p.m. Monday.
Early warning and evacuation measures have also been put in place for villages that may face further flooding, and related efforts are ongoing.
China’s Ministry of Water Resources on Monday upgraded the flood-control emergency response for Guangxi from Level III to Level II.
–IANS
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