Dozens killed in Jiangsu tornado
Print Edition
EXTREME weather in east China’s Jiangsu Province has killed at least 78 people, left about 500 injured and destroyed large numbers of buildings, the ministry of civil affairs said last night.
Of the injured, 200 are in a critical condition, authorities said.
Downpours, hailstorms and a tornado battered parts of Yancheng City at 2:30pm, destroying many houses, the local government said.
Extreme weather was reported in several townships in Funing and Sheyang counties in the suburbs of Yancheng.
Gales of up to 125 kilometers per hour battered several outer townships of Funing County, while in Sheyang, the winds reached 100kph.
Many houses collapsed in the gales, with 51 deaths reported and dozens of injuries as of 8:30pm.
Some regions reported blackouts and communication interruptions.
Witnesses said they saw huge trees falling and whole villages were leveled. Victims were dragged from the ruins of their homes and rushed to hospital.
“I heard the gales and ran upstairs to shut the windows,” said Xie Litian, 62, from Donggou township in Funing County. “I had hardly reached the top of the stairs when I heard a boom and saw the entire wall with the windows on it torn away.”
As he ran downstairs, the roof collapsed. “I crouched in a corner of the ground floor for at least 20 minutes, afraid to move.”
When the gales subsided and Xie escaped, all the other houses in the neighborhood were gone. “It was like the end of the world.”
Xie said he saw utility poles uprooted and his tractor was blown away. “I was drowned in my own sorrow, until I heard moans for help from a neighbor buried in the debris of her home.”
Xie helped the woman out and took her to hospital on his motorbike. “The road was blocked with rubble and fallen trees. Halfway to the hospital, I met my nephew driving a truck. Together, we put the women into his truck and drove on.”
Xie said at least three villagers he knew were dead. “This is the worst day I’ve ever faced,” he said.
Yancheng City officials are leading rescue and relief efforts in affected villages.
A State Council work group headed by Deputy Minister of Civil Affairs Dou Yupei was en route to Yancheng last night. The ministry has dispatched relief materials, including more than 1,000 tents and 2,000 folding beds, to affected regions.
Just days earlier, Vice Premier Wang Yang had said China faced volatile weather conditions due to the influence of El Nino.
Tornados occasionally strike southern China during the summer months, but rarely with the scale of death and damage caused yesterday.
This year, southern and eastern China have experienced weeks of torrential rain and storms causing flooding and dozens of casualties.
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