Storms kill at least eight in central China as Typhoon Bavi looms offshore

BEIJING: At least eight people were killed after thunderstorms battered central China’s Hubei Province, state media said on ​Tuesday, as forecasters warned of more torrential rain across ‌various parts of the country that are home to around 200 million people.

Over four hours on Monday evening, winds of up ​to 149 kph (92.58 mph) lashed the cities of ​Huangshi, Huanggang, Ezhou and Xianning, Xinhua reported citing ⁠Hubei’s emergency management.

The National Meteorological Centre said the southeastern ​region of Guangxi and eastern provinces of Jiangsu and Shandong should ​brace for extremely heavy rain of up to 260mm over the next 24 hours, which can trigger landslides, with other areas to China’s northeast ​and south expecting tornadoes.

Hubei and Shandong are among ​China’s key agricultural provinces, with the heavy rain raising concerns about ‌damage ⁠to corn, peanuts and vegetable crops that are harvested later in the season than wheat.

‘Very dangerous’ super typhoon nears US Pacific islands

Growing climate-driven weather extremes threaten tens of billions of dollars in annual economic ​losses in China, ​with recent floods swamping ⁠cities, disrupting industry and damaging crops. Meteorologists attribute the harsh conditions to climate ​change.

China is also on alert for Super ​Typhoon Bavi, ⁠which is making its way across the Pacific Ocean towards Taiwan. The U.S. National Weather Service said it ⁠was ​packing winds of up to 180 ​mph as it made its way across Guam, Tinian, Saipan and Rota ​on Monday.