Typhoon Fanapi claims 18 lives in China's south, 48 missing

Floods and landslides due to heavy downpours brought by typhoon Fanapi have claimed 18 lives as of 11 a.m. Wednesday in south China's Guangdong Province, while another 48 remain missing, local authorities said Wednesday, Xinhua reports.

Tin Mine, owned by Zijin Mining Group Co. in Qianbai Township of Xinyi City, collapsed after being hit by a landslide, leaving five dead, six missing and seven injured, Xinxi city government officials said, according to reports Hindustan Times.

The typhoon razed 346 houses and caused losses of USD 68.5 million (460 million yuan) in Xinyi.

Meanwhile, in Yangchun city, flooding caused three deaths, left eight others missing and forced the evacuation of nearly 19,000 of its inmates.

Shuangjiao township in Yangchun received 548 mm of rainfall in seven hours from 1 a.m. Tuesday (1700 GMT Monday), the highest rainfall in 58 years, said officials.

Sunday morning, Typhoon Fanabi descended on southern Taiwan, drenching the island with 44 inches of rain and crippling transport, causing widespread power outage and injuring 111 persons. Infrastructure was also damaged, but no deaths were reported, RTT News says.