Record rainstorms hit Hainan
By Wang Huazhong (China Daily/chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated:2010-10-07 07:44
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2010-10/07/content_11380692.htm
BEIJING –Record rainfall in China’s island province of Hainan has left two people missing and forced the evacuation of about 137,000 people from flooded homes.
As of Wednesday afternoon,the downpour,which started on Sept 30,had flooded hundreds of villages,inundated farmland,disrupted ferry services and threatened to burst reservoirs,said local authorities.
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The provincial meteorology bureau has predicted the rain will last until Friday.
Official records show the downpour is the worst in October since 1961,with its duration,as well as daily and total precipitations,breaking all records.
Moreover,a tropical cyclone formed over the South China Sea was moving at 50.4 kilometers per hour northwest on Tuesday and is expected to bring even more rain to Hainan,according to the National Meteorological Center.
The Hainan meteorological bureau raised its storm alarm to the highest level on Tuesday,as well as joined land and resources authorities in warning of possible hazards in seven cities and counties.
An official with Hainan’s flood control office told China Daily that 137,726 people from 1,160 villages were evacuated by 5 pm on Wednesday.
Rescuers were struggling to reach at least 6,000 people,Xinhua reported on Wednesday.
The floodwaters began to recede on Wednesday.