Seven people were killed and 10 more injured by lightning strike last Sunday
in Liangshan autonomous prefecture of ethnic Yi group, southwest China's Sichuan
province, the provincial disast er relief office and civil affairs department
said Wednesday.
Rainstorms and hail pounded local 33 towns and townships on July 4, affecting
38,000 locals and 2,990 hectares of cropland. Asa result, some 820 ha of
farmland will have no yield and 40 houses were torn down, leading to a total
direct economic loss of 11.38 million yuan (about 1.37 million US dollars).
Yanyuan county was reported to suffer the severest attacks fromsix hours of
thunderstorm and hail, leaving 23,000 locals affected and six killed by
lightening strikes, including two girls, aged three and seven.
Sichuan provincial authorities have dispatched teams to inspect the affected
areas and direct relief work, along with an allocation of relief funds.