China: Climate change amplifies flood seasons, torrential rains kill 25 people

Torrential rains in southern China have killed at least 25 people, impacted millions of residents and caused billions of yuan in economic losses, as the country grapples with increasingly devastating flood seasons fueled by climate change.

At least 10 people are dead, and three are still unaccounted for after heavy rainfall battered central China's Hunan Province, local authorities said in a news briefing on June 8. From June 1 to 6, Hunan has endured its longest and heaviest rain of the year. Over 1.79 million people have been affected by the deluge, and as of June 8, nearly 1,200 houses have either been severely damaged or destroyed.

In recent weeks, heavy rainfall has triggered severe flooding and landslides in large swathes of southern China, damaging homes, crops and roads.
More than 2,700 houses have collapsed or suffered severe damage, and 96,160 hectares of crops have been destroyed -- heavy losses for a province that serves as a major rice-producing hub for China. Direct economic losses are estimated at more than 4 billion yuan ($600 million), according to officials.
[CGTN, CNN]