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4 dead, 3 missing as heavy weather hits rural China

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-11-10 16:00

NANCHANG: Four people are dead and three are missing after torrential and hail hit villages in rural eastern and central China, authorities said Tuesday.

In Guangfeng County, in the eastern Jiangxi Province, strong wind and heavy rain since Monday night had left three people dead, injured 82 others and destroyed more than 1,200 homes, Zhu Bingliang, a Guangfeng publicity official said.

He said power supplies in Guangfeng had been suspended for more than two hours on Monday.

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"This is the most extreme weather seen here in Guangfeng over the past 50 years," Zhu said.

In Liangzihu, in the central Hubei Province, a woman of 91 was killed when her home collapsed during heavy rain.

Three people in the area were missing and two others were seriously injured.

Local officials estimated that the rain had caused economic losses of 110 million yuan (US$16 million).

In Daye City, an hour-long hail storm damaged more than 7,200 homes and 1,600 hectares of cropland. Two people suffered head injuries.