An intense downpour has forced 37,000 people to flee their homes
in Yunxi, central China's Hubei Province, Thursday morning, sources with
the local flood control headquarters said.
Torrential rains lashed the Yunxi County of northwestern Hubei
from 3:00 AM to 8:00 AM Thursday, with precipitation reaching 184.3
millimeters in certain areas, official with the headquarters
said.
Ma'anguan reservoir in the county reached its warning limit of
361.47 meters around 6:00 AM, forcing more than 16,000 residents in
the lower reaches of the reservoir to evacuate in less than two
hours.
Another 18,000 residents living in villages around four other
reservoirs had also been evacuated.
The headquarters has set up 100 tents for the residents and is
evaluating the damages.
The last downpour of similar forces, which battered the county
on July 28, killed five people and caused an economic loss of more
than 150 million yuan (about US$19 million).
Across the country, 1,279 people died and 239 went missing in
natural disasters in the first seven months of this year, the
Ministry of Civil Affairs said earlier this week.
(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2007)