14 dead, 5 missing from heavy rains in China

BEIJING — Heavy rains that ravaged China over the weekend left at least 14 people dead and five missing, while hundreds of others were trapped by mudslides and floods, state media said Monday.

The official Xinhua News Agency said five were killed and one was missing in central China’s Hubei province, where rainstorms and mudslides destroyed 512 houses and forced more than 180,000 residents from their homes. The rain was triggered by Typhoon Saola.

In northeast China’s Liaoning province, Typhoon Damrey killed nine people and left four missing, Xinhua said.

Flooding from heavy rain also trapped about 400 workers in a railway tunnel in the province, the state-run China Daily newspaper reported.

In southwest China, rescue workers searched Monday for more than 100 people trapped by a mudslide.

Xinhua said the mudslide engulfed a village in Yunnan province on Monday morning, initially trapping at least 200 people. It said firefighters rescued more than 80 people by noon.

Mudslides and flooding are common in China’s mountainous areas, killing hundreds of people every year. Deforestation has caused soil erosion and made some parts of China prone to mudslides after strong rains.