Rainstorms affect 410,000 in S.China

NANNING - More than 410,000 people in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have been affected by torrential rains, authorities said Sunday.

Heavy downpours have been sweeping across the region since last Wednesday. Four people were killed and about 417,700 people were affected by the rains as of 4 pm on Saturday, according to the civil affairs department of the region.

A total of 24,340 hectares of crops have been affected and more than 1,200 houses collapsed. It is estimated that the heavy rains have caused a direct economic loss of 205 million yuan (33 million US dollars) in the area.

Heavy downpours have been wrecking havoc in south China during last week. According to National Meteorological Center (NMC), parts of Guangxi, and the provinces of Yunnan and Guangdong will see rainstorms from Sunday to Tuesday.