Heavy Rains Spur Landslides in China’s Fujian, Killing Four; Two Missing

An aerial drone photo taken on 16 June 2024 shows a flooded area in Dongping Township of Zhenghe County, Nanping City, China's Fujian Province, 16 June 2024. (EPA/Xinhua)
An aerial drone photo taken on 16 June 2024 shows a flooded area in Dongping Township of Zhenghe County, Nanping City, China's Fujian Province, 16 June 2024. (EPA/Xinhua)
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Heavy Rains Spur Landslides in China’s Fujian, Killing Four; Two Missing

An aerial drone photo taken on 16 June 2024 shows a flooded area in Dongping Township of Zhenghe County, Nanping City, China's Fujian Province, 16 June 2024. (EPA/Xinhua)
An aerial drone photo taken on 16 June 2024 shows a flooded area in Dongping Township of Zhenghe County, Nanping City, China's Fujian Province, 16 June 2024. (EPA/Xinhua)

Torrential rain triggered landslides in China's Fujian province, killing four people and leaving two missing, state television CCTV reported on Monday.

Downpours in Wuping county since Sunday afternoon have caused 378 homes to collapse and prompted authorities to launch an emergency flood response. Fujian provincial meteorological bureau classified the storms as "extreme events," CCTV reported.

Over the past few days, heavy rain has inundated the province, breaking a historical record in Wuping county. Economic losses in the county totaled 415 million yuan ($57.19 million), state media reported.

Many parts of southern China have been impacted by rains over the past few days, with many localities issuing flood warnings and advisories.

In Jiangxi province from 8 a.m. Sunday to 8 a.m. Monday, the average rainfall was 24 mm, with 288 weather stations in 56 counties recording considerable precipitation, state media said.

In Chongqing, the torrential rain caused water levels of five rivers to rise by 1 to 3 meters, according to CCTV.



At Least 52 Dead after Helene's Deadly March Across Southeastern US

John Taylor puts up an American flag on his destroyed property in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Horseshoe Beach, Fla., Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
John Taylor puts up an American flag on his destroyed property in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Horseshoe Beach, Fla., Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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At Least 52 Dead after Helene's Deadly March Across Southeastern US

John Taylor puts up an American flag on his destroyed property in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Horseshoe Beach, Fla., Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
John Taylor puts up an American flag on his destroyed property in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Horseshoe Beach, Fla., Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Hurricane Helene caused at least 52 deaths and billions of dollars of destruction across a wide swath of the southeastern US as it raced through, and more than 3 million customers went into the weekend without any power and for some a continued threat of floods.

Helene blew ashore in Florida's Big Bend region as a Category 4 hurricane late Thursday packing winds of 140 mph (225 kph) and then quickly moved through Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee, uprooting trees, splintering homes and sending creeks and rivers over their banks and straining dams.

Western North Carolina was essentially cut off because of landslides and flooding that forced the closure of Interstate 40 and other roads. Video shows sections of Asheville underwater.
There were hundreds of water rescues, none more dramatic than in rural Unicoi County in East Tennessee, where dozens of patients and staff were plucked by helicopter from the roof of a hospital that was surrounded by water from a flooded river.
The storm, now a post-tropical cyclone, was expected to hover over the Tennessee Valley on Saturday and Sunday, the National Hurricane Center said. Several flood and flash flood warnings remained in effect in parts of the southern and central Appalachians, while high wind warnings also covered parts of Tennessee and Ohio.
At least 48 people have been killed in the storm; among them were three firefighters, a woman and her one-month-old twins, and an 89-year-old woman whose house was struck by a falling tree. According to an Associated Press tally, the deaths occurred in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

Moody’s Analytics said it expects $15 billion to $26 billion in property damage.