Summer floods kill 764 people in China

Floods this summer have killed 764 people in China, according to a government official.

A total of 191 people are missing, said Zhang Zhitong, deputy director of the Office of the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

Until Thursday, the floods have affected 90.21 million people in 27 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions across the country, Zhang said.

About 7 million hectares of crops were attacked and 702,100 houses collapsed during the disaster, which has caused 47.65 billion yuan (5.79 billion US dollars) of direct loss, he said.

Guangxi, Fujian, Hunan, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Chongqing, Heilongjiang, Anhui and Henan were the most grievously-hit regions.

At present, 64,900 people are still struggling on the dams in Henan, Anhui and Jiangsu, Zhang said.

Source: Xinhua