BEIJING, Aug. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- While a heatwave scorches southern parts of China and drought shows no sign of easing in some provinces, severe hailstorms have lashed the northeast of the country.
Hailstones the size of a baseball pelted down from the sky. The good news was that no casualties were reported. But the damage to houses and farmlands is immense.
The hail storms that have swept northeast China’s Liaoning Province over the past few days have badly affected more than 200 thousand people and thousands of hectares of crops have been destroyed. The direct economic loss has is so far estimated at around 240 million Yuan.
The hail was followed by torrential rain and strong wind. Villagers hardly had the time to prepare before the disaster hit. And some didn’t know what had happened till the morning after.
Jin Baosen, villager of Tieling county, Liaoning province, said, "We heard a cracking sound on the windows and roofs, the wind was very strong. When we woke up the next morning, many trees were half uprooted and some had been completely torn out from the ground."
Although the storm helped to cool down the recent scorching temperatures, the extreme weather has left crops in ruins.
Yu Cheng, villager, said, "We couldn’t really see the actual size of the hailstones, but when they landed, the water splashed this high. I’m over 70 years old and I’ve never seen a hail storm like this."
It’s not over yet. According to the provincial meteorological center: the region may have more rounds of torrential rain and storms throughout the month of August.
(Source: cntv.cn)
Editor: Bi Mingxin