Deadly east China downpours cause heavy damage

Heavy rain has been sweeping east China's Jiangxi Province for four days, flooding crops, toppling houses and killing at least one person, local authorities reported on Thursday. The water level in Jiangxi's main river and several reservoirs has exceeded danger levels. More than 190,000 people have been affected by the torrential rain, according to Jiangxi's civil affairs department. The rain has also damaged about 2,000 buildings and drenched 10,500 hectares of farmland. Authorities estimated the extreme weather has cost farmers 110 million yuan (17.8 million U.S. dollars) in direct losses.