Floods kill 14 people, leave 53 missing in China

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In this photo released by Chinas Xinhua News Agency, vehicles are swept… (AP Photo/Xinhua, Huang Shilin)

Rain-triggered floods in southwestern China have killed 14 people and left 53 others missing while destroying roads, bridges and thousands of homes, officials said Tuesday.

The 14 deaths were reported in Guizhou province’s Wangmo county, where 52 people were reported missing, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported, citing the provincial civil affairs authority. Another person was missing in the province’s Luodian county.

Some 45,000 residents in worst-hit Wangmo county have been evacuated since flood waters inundated the area Monday, said Tang Quanshu of the county’s flood prevention office. She said another 3,000 people were still stranded.

Meanwhile, the waters toppled 300 houses and left 2,400 submerged, while 21 square miles (5,500 hectares) of farmland were under water, Tang said.