Typhoons leave 51 Chinese dead, 21 missing

BEIJING - Three consecutive typhoons that have hit Chinese coastal areas in the past two weeks have caused 51 deaths and left 21 people missing as of Monday, according to the country's Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Typhoons Saola, Damrey and Haikui have influenced over 30 million people in 12 provincial regions, said a statement issued on Monday by the ministry.

Preliminary reports show that subsequent natural disasters have destroyed 88,000 houses and damaged 2.3 million hectares of farmland, while direct economic losses have exceeded 65 billion yuan ($10.24 billion ).