Floods claimed 88 lives, destroyed 17 000 homes and damaged 82 000, China

At least 88 people have died and 17 are still missing as a result of severe floods and landslides affecting parts of southwest China since last week.

The worst affected are provinces of Jiangxi, Guangxi, Guizhou, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hunan, Guangdong and Chongqing. 

According to official sources, 88 people have been killed, up from 61 on June 14, and 18 are still missing.

388 000 are displaced and over 6 million affected.

At least 17 000 homes were destroyed and 82 000 damaged.

5 060 people were rescued and more than 14 000 evacuated, according to data provided by DG ECHO.

According to a statement released by the government, the National Meteorological Center has issued a yellow warning of rainstorm on June 20 and China Meteorological Administration (CMA) activated a level four emergency response at 18:00 LT on June 20, requiring all relevant meteorological sectors attached to CMA to enter the emergency position immediately and put corresponding meteorological services in place.

The potentially affected areas such as Hunan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangxi, Sichuan and Guizhou are expected to sustain or adjust the emergency state according to local realities.

Southeastern Henan, central-eastern Hubei, central-southern Anhui, southern Jiangsu, northern Hunan, northern Jiangxi, Shanghai, Zhejiang, eastern Chongqing, and northern Guizhou were expected to experience heavy rain on June 20 and 21. 

Between 100 – 180 mm (3.9 – 7 inches) of rainfall are expected in southern and western Anhui, eastern Hubei, and western Zhejiang. The maximum expected hourly rainfall is 70 mm (2.75 inches).

Featured image credit: CCTV