Anthony
(3) Floods Killed 101, Closed 10,000 Factories
[CND, 07/14/97] Floods in eastern and southern China have killed at
least 101 people so far in July and caused the closure of 10,000 mines
and factories in just two provinces, Reuters reported citing official
state media. At least 10 people were killed by deluges in Zhejiang
province, 41 in Guangdong province, 34 in Guangxi province, and 16 in
Jiangxi province, according to local media. More than 3,000 mines and
factories in Jiangxi were forced to stop production, 340,000 hectares
(840,000 acres) of farmland affected, and 26,000 houses destroyed,
affecting 5.59 million people. In Zhejiang, 5.14 million people were
affected by the floods and 7,100 factories closed. Direct economic
losses in Zhejiang were estimated to be in excess of 3.0 billion yuan
($361 million). (Ray ZHANG)