Death toll from typhoon Sepat rises to 14

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-08-19 17:45

WENZHOU -- One more person was killed by house collapse in east China's Zhejiang Province, bringing the death toll from typhoon Sepat to 14, said local sources on Sunday.


Photo taken on August 18, 2007 shows the big wave at the Dongtou Island of Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.[Xinhua]

The victim was a farmer evacuated from Wencheng County of Wenzhou City before the landfall of typhoon, who returned home on Sunday morning.

Sepat brought rainfall of 40 millimeter per hour to Wencheng County, disrupting power supply in eight townships and villages.

Before its landfall, Sepat spawned a tornado that smashed buildings and killed 11 people in the Cangnan Township of Wenzhou on Saturday night.

In Fujian Province where the typhoon slammed on land, two people were killed and one was missing in a landslide triggered by Sepat.

Typhoon Sepat landed in Chongwu Town, Hui'an County of Quanzhou City early Sunday morning, lashed the central and northern parts of the province with gale and rainstorm. Rainfall from 8 am Saturday to 8 am Sunday reached 200 millimeters in 11 of Fujian's 95 counties, cities and districts and exceeded 300 millimeters in two regions.

The typhoon damaged 366 houses in Quanzhou City of Fujian, inundated 5,920 hectares of crops, cut off road traffic and power supply lines in some regions, affecting 162,600 people and inflicting an economic loss of 72 million yuan.

The typhoon also caused severe damages in Zhejiang, ruining 19,700 hectares of crops, wrecking 28.7 km of power supply lines and 22.1 km of dams, affecting 616,000 people across the province and resulting in a direct economic loss of 250 million yuan (US$32.9 million).

As it roars on, Sepat is expected to arrive at Jiangxi Province by Sunday but has weakened to strong tropical storm.

 



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