Torrential rain leaves two dead, four missing in central China

CHANGSHA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Torrential rain has pounded parts of central China's Hunan Province since Monday night, leaving two people dead and another four missing in Yuanling County, local authorities said on Tuesday.

The rain fell mainly in the areas of the Yuanshui River, the upper reaches of the Lishui River and Dongting Lake. The Tongcheping Hydrologic Station in Yuanling recorded 224 millimeters of rainfall on Tuesday morning, according to the Hunan Provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

Nearly 90,000 people in Yuanling were affected by the strong rain that triggered floods, landslides and damaged houses, roads, crops, power supplies and telecom networks, a county government spokesman said.

"We have dispatched rescuers to search (for) the missing people and workers to repair the damaged facilities," he said.

Local meteorological authorities forecast the torrential rain would last until Thursday.