Tropical Storm Gaemi triggered flash floods in northeast China on the border with North Korea and brought railway disruptions and landslides to other parts of the country, state media reported on Sunday.
#Budget 2024 with ET
Budget Highlights: Your 2-minute guide
What's cheaper and what's costlier? Here's the list
New slabs announced in new income tax regime
Two officials, including the deputy mayor of Linjiang city in Jilin province, went missing during flood rescue efforts, state broadcaster CCTV said, citing city authorities. More than 27,000 people in northeast China were evacuated and hundreds of factories suspended operations.
Cyclonic winds from Gaemi, downgraded from a typhoon, had mostly dissipated by Sunday, but many parts of China remained under alert for flooding risks caused by earlier rains. Remnants of Gaemi's vast cloud-banks could still dump rain on already waterlogged cities, forecasters warned.
The most powerful storm to hit the country this year lashed towns on coastal Fujian province on Friday with heavy rains and strong winds as it began its trek from the southeastern coast into the populous interior.
Jilin province, bordering North Korea, issued upgraded warnings for heavy rains and flash floods on Sunday morning. Linjiang authorities shut schools, factories and businesses on Sunday, warning that «major flood disasters may occur».
In southern China, a landslide near Hengyang city in Hunan province on Sunday morning trapped 18 people, of whom six were found dead and six injured were rescued,