As of 9:30 PM yesterday, the search for nine people missing after heavy rains and flooding in northeast China's Liaoning Province from Friday night to Saturday was continuing, local government sources said.

Torrential rains and the ensuing floods affected 116 townships in the province, destroying more than 2,500 houses and damaging 60,000 hectares of crops, according to the provincial headquarters for flood control and drought relief.

By 7 PM on Sunday, flooding had cut off traffic on 47 county-level highways, 17 more than Saturday, and damaged 25 bridges and 119 tunnels. The total losses are estimated to be 81.15 million yuan (US$10 million).

Heavy rains also caused landslides and the collapse of roadbeds in some places, according to the headquarters.

Seven hundred people were rescued from floods yesterday, whilst two artery highways and four county-level highways reopened to traffic after rush repairs.

The provincial meteorological station forecast moderate to heavy rains in some parts of the province in the coming week, and the flood control and drought relief headquarters is working on measures to keep losses to a minimum.

(Xinhua News Agency August 15, 2005)