Over 20 killed in S China storms

Floods, landslides and mud flows have killed 22 and displaced 197,000 in southern China since heavy rain began Saturday, prompting emergency response to evacuate affected people and prevent further damages in crops and buildings.

According to China's Ministry of Civil Affairs, by 9 a.m. Monday, a total of 20 people are still missing.

More than 2,400 homes and 20,900 hectares of crops were destroyed. Direct economic losses from the floods hit 2.7 billion yuan (about 410 million U.S. dollars), the ministry said.

In southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, five people have died since Saturday as rivers burst their banks in flash floods.

The flood control and drought relief headquarters in Chongqing said1,197 people had been displaced and 66 houses destroyed.

In neighboring Sichuan Province, four people died Sunday after heavy rain and the ensuing landslides caused their houses to collapse.

Yongning River, a tributary of the Yangtze, saw its biggest flood in 80 years, with the water rising 1.43 meters above the safety line.

In northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, floods and hail have killed two people and another person is missing. Around 13,000 were relocated.

Three people lost their lives in east China's Anhui Province, also as a result of collapsed houses. The search for a missing child in Susong County continues, according to the civil affairs department of the province. The county was hit by heavy rain from Saturday morning, ruining 26,900 hectares of crops, destroying 266 houses and forcing 16,000 people to relocate.

In Guizhou Province, rescuers are trying to extract eight trapped miners from a mine shaft that was flooded on Sunday.

In central China's Hunan Province, rain and floods have caused the water level to rise in Liye, an ancient town where a large number of bamboo slips chronicling China's Qin Dynasty were excavated. Water overflowed river banks and part of the ancient town ruins. Authorities cut off electricity on Monday afternoon for safety. Over 20,000 people, including 5,000 tourists, were evacuated.

(APD)