Rainstorms hit north Fujian Province, southeastern China, with floods and landslides causing causalities over the past three days, said the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters on Monday.

In Nanping City, the disaster affected a population of 573,000. According to an incomplete statistics, by 8 AM on Monday, two people were killed in floods while landslides leaving five others dead in the rainstorm-stricken area.

Rainstorms also resulted in 1,760 houses collapse and other 3,994 houses damaged, leaving direct economic losses of 439.2 million yuan (US$52.8 million) in the province.

In Dongfeng Town of Jian'ou City, local government sources confirmed early Monday that three people were killed in flooding along all the local rivers.

Continuous heavy rains brought on floods in large and middle-sized reservoirs at upper reaches of Minjiang River, the largest river in the province. Water levels at nine hydrographic stations, including Masha, Jianyang and Dongyou, had exceeded the cautionary level.

Torrential rains hit Nanping City and several other cities and counties in northern Fujian between June 17 and 20. Nanping reported an averaged rain fall of 203 mm over the past three days. Other eleven counties and cities reported rainfall of over 100 mm and 19 cities and counties reported rainfall of 50 to 90 mm. Jian'ou City reported a rainfall of 107 mm within two hours.

Heavy rains caused serious flooding of local rivers and Mingjiang's tributaries such as the Jianxi and Fuchun rivers. The rainfall at 34 hydrographic stations along Minjiang River and its tributaries reached 200 mm with a peak of 427.5 mm at Daiping Station.

The water level in some rivers exceeded the warning line by 3.75 meters to 3.11 meters, which was rarely seen in the past 20 years, according to local hydrological stations.

In eastern China's Jiangxi Province, due to recent severe downpours and floods, water levels at upper reaches of Fuhe River, tributaries of Ganjiang River and Xinjiang River had also reached over the cautionary lines.

During the recent three days, the province had become a rainstorm center across the country, receiving a rainfall of 89.4 mm, and an seriously-hit area at the drainage area of Yangtze River, China's largest.

Southern China has been soaked in rain in the past days after flood season started at the beginning of June, and the impending rainstorms will possibly bring more climate-related disasters, including flood and mud-rock flow.

In Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, water levels of Xijiang River and Yujiang River have respectively reached 19.61 meters and2.31 meters higher than the cautionary level, according to local hydrographic stations' reports.

Primary statistics showed a population of 455,000 in Guilin, a famous tourist city, and 363,000 in Liuzhou, a crucial industrial city, were stricken by rainstorms, as over 60 cities and counties across the autonomous region received 100 millimeters of rain fall.

According to the weather forecast, from Monday to Tuesday, rainstorms will pelt middle and northern Guangxi, middle and northern Guangdong Province, southeastern Hunan Province, southern and middle Jiangxi Province, Fujian Province and southern Zhejiang Province.

Meanwhile, people living in northeastern China are preparing to fight floods and landslides possibly caused by thundershowers, which will hit these areas from Monday to Tuesday, according to the forecast.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2005)