Floods, earthquake wreak havoc in China

More than 150 people lost their lives over the past week due to severe weather in several parts of China, the BBC reports. In Chongqing Municipality in the southwest and Shandong Province in the east, rainstorms, floods, landslides and mud flows claimed 74 lives. According to local officials, several people remain missing and 300,000 have been evacuated from their homes.

In Yunnan Province in southern China, at least 59 people have died in floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains.

According to Xinhua news agency, local officials have warned that there is a risk of flooding in the coming days along the Huai River, where the water levels are expected to remain very high at least for the next ten days.

Material damage caused by the rains has been estimated at several millions of dollars.

On Sunday, President Hu Jintao visited the flood-stricken areas of Chongqing and offered his condolences to flood victims. He instilled confidence in the locals who are now faced with the task of rebuilding their homes.

Statistics show that last year, floods and typhoons killed over 2,700 people in China. This year, the flood season that usually lasts from May to September has already claimed hundreds of lives.

In addition to the ravages brought about by torrential rains, over 8,000 people had to be evacuated on Friday after a 5.7-magnitude earthquake hit Tekes County in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Over 2,000 homes were leveled or damaged by the quake. No casualties have been reported.

The quake hit at 6 pm, with its epicenter 60 kilometers from the county seat and 430 kilometers from Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang. Tekes County has a population of 143,000 and covers an area of 8,352 square kilometers.

Disaster relief efforts continue in the region and temporary shelters have been set up for the quake-affected residents.