BEIJING - At least 15 people have died during unseasonably heavy rain and flooding in north China’s Shanxi province earlier this month, local officials said Tuesday, after the normally dry region received three months’ rain in one week.
The flooding hit the coal-rich landlocked region during a nationwide energy crunch, and after record floods killed more than 300 people in central Henan province in July.
At least 60 coal mines in the province -- one of China’s top coal-producing regions -- had temporarily closed due to the floods, but now all but four have returned to normal operation, local emergency management official Wang Qirui said at a press conference.
Wang said around 19,000 buildings were destroyed by the extreme weather, with 18,000 others “seriously damaged”.
“Fifteen people died due to the disaster, and three people remain missing,” he added.