Storms kill at least eight in central China as Typhoon Bavi looms offshore

BEIJING: At least eight people were killed after thunderstorms battered central China’s Hubei Province, state media said on Tuesday, as forecasters warned of more torrential rain across various parts of the country that are home to around 200 million people.

Over four hours on Monday evening, winds of up to 150kph lashed the cities of Huangshi, Huanggang, Ezhou and Xianning, Xinhua reported citing Hubei’s emergency management.

The National Meteorological Centre said the southeastern region of Guangxi and eastern provinces of Jiangsu and Shandong should brace for extremely heavy rain of up to 260mm over the next 24 hours, which can trigger landslides, with other areas to China’s northeast and south expecting tornadoes.

Hubei and Shandong are among China’s key agricultural provinces, with the heavy rain raising concerns about damage to corn, peanuts and vegetable crops that are harvested later in the season than wheat.

Growing climate-driven weather extremes threaten tens of billions of dollars in annual economic losses in China, with recent floods swamping cities, disrupting industry and damaging crops. Meteorologists attribute the harsh conditions to climate change.

China is ​also on alert for Super Typhoon Bavi, which is making its way across the Pacific Ocean towards Taiwan. The US National Weather Service said it was ‌packing winds ⁠of up to 290kph as it made its way across Guam, Tinian, Saipan and Rota on Monday.