Tropical storm Cimaron brings downpours to E China

FUZHOU - Rainstorms swept East China's Fujian province on Friday after tropical storm Cimaron made landfall on Thursday night.

Some neighborhoods and villages in southern Fujian were flooded, and houses collapsed and power was cut in affected areas, the provincial flood prevention and drought relief headquarters said.

From 10 pm Thursday to 9 am Friday, ten county-level regions in Fujian reported precipitation of 50 mm to 100 mm. Eleven others had more than 100 mm of rainfall, with 520 mm in the city of Longhai.

"I have never seen such heavy rain in my life," said Wang Yaqing, a 45-year-old resident of Longhai.

As of 9 am Friday, some 35,400 people had been evacuated to safety because of the downpours. Thirty-four reservoirs across the province were flooded.

The provincial meteorological station said the heavy rains will continue in six cities until Friday night.

Cimaron, the eighth tropical storm to hit China this year, landed in coastal Zhangpu county in the city of Zhangzhou at 8:30 pm Thursday, packing strong wind.