12 dead as downpours batter South China

At least 12 people have been killed in the latest rainstorms to batter south China, according to flood control authorities.
In Guizhou Province, nine people are reported dead and another is missing after torrential rains on Tuesday and Wednesday brought floods and landslides.
Flooding hit 44 counties in Guizhou affecting 1.22 million people, about 88,000 of whom have been evacuated. More than 18,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, Xinhua quoted the Guizhou Civil Affairs Department as saying.
Power, water and communications were cut off in Shiqian County, where the flood has left seven dead and one missing. Thousands of tents, quilts and clothes have been sent to the scene, officials said.
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region also reported two deaths; one person struck by lightning and another killed by a collapsing house. The rain has affected 148,900 people there and forced the evacuation of 2,788.
Direct economic losses including property and crop damage are calculated at 109 million yuan (17.4 mln U.S. dollars), the region's civil affairs officials said.
In Sichuan Province, a 70-year-old villager in Tongjiang County, Bazhong City, died after being swept away by a mountain torrent on Monday evening.
At least 37 people died and six others are unaccounted for after the previous downpours in May.