Death toll from storm rises to 31 in Chongqing

CHONGQING - The death toll from a violent storm in  southwest China"s Chongqing Municipality since Wednesday has climbed to 31, said local authorities Friday.

Twenty-one people in Dianjiang County, six people in Liangping County and four others in Peiling District were killed after severe gales destroyed their homes. One person in Pengshui County was still missing, according to the Chongqing Municipal Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

The gales and torrential rain that lashed the city from Wednesday night also damaged its water facilities, including reservoirs and a hydropower station, causing direct economic losses of 121 million yuan ($17.7 million), said the headquarters.

More than 100,000 residents in Chongqing were short of drinking water due to damages of water facilities, it said.

Fuling District received the most rainfall of 195.3 mm in the six hours to 8 am Friday, according to the municipal meteorological bureau.

In east China"s Jiangxi Province, seven people are dead and five missing after floods and landslides over the past two days.

Rainstorms also left six dead and three others missing in southern Guangdong Province.