24 dead, 23 missing in China floods
22/06/2005 - 07:38:29Flooding triggered by torrential rains killed at least 24 people in a region of southern China and left 23 others missing, the government said today.
More than 20,000 houses were wrecked by the floodwaters in the Guangxi region, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing disaster officials.
The area has been pounded by heavy rain since Saturday, causing swollen rivers to overflow their banks, Xinhua said.
The Wuzhou River was 28 feet above its danger level at midday today, Xinhua said. It said the city of Wuzhou was preparing to evacuate residents in the event that its dikes fail.
Flooding also was reported in the popular tourist town of Yangshuo, which attracts thousands of visitors a year to its finger-like limestone peaks, Xinhua said.
