Landslides Leave Eight Dead, Thousands Homeless

Landslides have left eight people dead, four missing, and over 10,000 homeless in mountainous Yunyang County, in southwest China's Chongqing City.

Yunyang, located in the Three Gorges area of the Yangtze River, has been hit by a succession of torrential rains, which dumped 354 mm of rain on the area from July 1 to 6, or about one third of the average annual rainfall.

The rains have resulted in large-scale landslides in the county. In the village of Xinyang, a landslide measuring about two sq km destroyed 106 houses, leaving some 400 people homeless.

So far this summer, eight large-scale landslides and over 1,600 small ones have been recorded in the county, a key area of relocation for the Three Gorges Project.



People's Daily Online --- http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/