News in brief: Heavy rains in China have caused five deaths, destroyed houses and farmlands, and led to the evacuation of over 1,500 people in the eastern part of the country. The intense and unpredictable storms have also caused damage to crops, posing a risk to local agriculture.
Heavy rains in China have reportedly left five people dead and destroyed many houses and farmlands. Two people are also reported missing due to the deluge in a news release.
Authorities have had to evacuate more than 1,500 people in the eastern part of the country due to the flood while efforts continue to search and rescue others.
Flood waters poured through streets and submerged parts of Chinaâs northeast, leaving dozens of houses damaged in its wake, reports claim. It also ruined crops in farmlands, with about about 54 hectares of crops damaged in the area around Jinzhou and the coastal city of Huludao.
Heavy rain in China around late July is typical, but storms are becoming more intense and hardly predictable.
Reports from Chinaâs state TV also disclose that torrential rains have forced the evacuation of about 5,500 people by authorities in Liaoning province. Several cities have witnessed more than 100 millimeters of rain. A district of provincial capital Dalian witnessed 93 millimeters of rain in one hour.
Rescue work is underway in most Chinese provinces, with rescue workers having to wade through flooded areas with water up to their knees, as other reports claim.
The country’s agriculture ministry noted that the rain has alleviated a situation of drought that was seen in May and June in some areas of the northeast. However, the rains still pose a significant risk to local crops like corn and soybeans, the ministry notes, with the weather patterns pointing at more extreme weather.
