China faces worst ever downpour; over 75 dead or missing

Beijing: As many as 75 people have either died or gone missing since Monday in the worst ever flood of the recent five years, the government said on Thursday.

According to the figures released by the Civil Affairs Ministry, over 576 people have been recorded as dead or missing nationwide in the first half of the year in heavy downpours. The torrential rainfall in Beijing has resulted in cancellation of several flights and trains.

The government has evacuated thousands of people from flood-hit areas and direct economic losses have risen into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

President Xi Jinping on Wednesday warned the country to be prepared for more hardship to come and said officials found negligent in their duties would be severely punished.