Gusts cut power in East China

More than 600 electricians were restoring power supplies to more than 50,000 households in East China's Jiangxi Province, local electricity providers said Tuesday.

Heavy winds have swept through Jiangxi since Saturday, blowing at speeds of up to 117 km per hour in Ji'an and Anfu counties, according to local meteorological authorities.

Electricity pylons have been toppled by the gusts. Power supplies in 18 counties and townships, including 104 villages, have been affected, depriving 53,120 households of electricity, said an official of the Jiangxi Electric Power Company.

With contingency plans being implemented, the company mobilized 637 electricians to counties and townships to repair the infrastructure.

As of Tuesday morning, two 110-kv substations and five 35-kv substations have resumed supplying power to 29,439 households.

Heavy rainfall has also been reported in the province since Saturday. Flood risks forced about 600 Jiangxi residents to be relocated on Sunday.

According to a statement issued by the provincial Civil Affairs Department, 18 people died in extreme weathers since mid-April; 84,900 hectares of farmland have been damaged, and 6,400 hectares of crops would bear no harvest.

Heavy winds and storms also caused the collapse of 3,900 houses and damage to another 8,867 in the province. Direct economic losses were estimated at 510 million yuan (US$81 million), the statement said.