The bodies of six members of a family have been found in Fujian province, state media reported on Saturday, after heavy rains triggered landslides in the region, adding to the extreme weather death toll as authorities extended warnings of more severe weather to come.
According to the state-run Hongxing News, the six people, who had previously been reported missing, were found dead by rescuers in a temple near their home in Shanghang county, Fujian province, after days of searching. They had taken refuge in the temple on higher ground when the building collapsed in a landslide, killing the entire family.
Authorities said 47 people were killed on Friday in neighboring Guangdong province, where historic rain-induced floods have damaged more than 100 bridges, inundated farmland and destroyed roads connecting rural areas.
The heaviest rains fell from Sunday into Tuesday, downing trees and destroying homes, with officials estimating damage costs at billions of dollars.
China’s National Meteorological Center issued further extreme weather warnings for a wide range of southern provinces on Saturday, extending a warning from Friday, as well as issuing alerts for several areas in the north.
Forecasters said hail and heavy thunderstorms were expected in the central Chinese provinces of Henan and Anhui, coastal Jiangsu and southern Guizhou.
Heavy rains in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang caused railway companies to cancel several weekend services.
Heavy rains last week caused landslides and floods in southern China’s Fujian province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, including the death of a student in Guangxi after he fell into a swollen river caused by heavy rains.
Earlier this year, The death toll is Landslides hit remote mountainous area in southwest China According to state media, the death toll has risen to 20. A pre-dawn landslide in Zhenxiong county, Yunnan province, buried 18 homes and forced the evacuation of more than 200 people. More than 30 hours after the disaster, 20 people have been confirmed dead, according to state CCTV.
