Typhoon kills four, affects millions in China

Four people have died and millions have been affected after typhoon Haikui slammed China, authorities said Thursday.

The storm made landfall Wednesday in the coastal province of Zhejiang. The provinces of Jiangsu and Anhui, and the Shanghai city were also affected, Xinhua reported.

Two people were killed and about 360,000 were affected in Shanghai, the civil affairs ministry said, adding that 50 houses were destroyed.

In Jiangsu, one person died and about 662,000 people were affected. The storm also destroyed 600 houses.

The maximum impact was felt in Zhejiang province, where over seven million people were affected. The storm also killed one person.

In Anhui, about 163,000 people were evacuated, the ministry added.

Heavy rains continued to lash the region Thursday.

Rains in parts of Anhui exceeded 100 mm, with Huangshan city, a tourist site, receiving up to 390 mm, Met officials said. Over 53,000 hectares of crops were destroyed.

Direct economic losses were estimated at 670 million yuan (about $100 million).