Earthquakes and forest fires take toll

Eighty-seven people died in natural disasters in the first quarter of 2019, the Ministry of Emergency Management announced yesterday.

In the first three months, natural disasters including hailstorms, forest fires, earthquakes and snowstorms affected nearly 1.4 million people and caused 13,000 people to relocate, the ministry said.

Destroyed homes and damaged crops resulted in a direct economic loss of 2.79 billion yuan (US$415 million).

Geological disasters and forest fires led to heavy casualties, the ministry said.

Thirty people died in geological disasters and 39 people were killed by forest fires in the past three months.

The ministry said southern China saw more rainfall compared with the same period in recent years, with the provinces of Jiangxi, Hunan and Yunnan suffering from severe floods.

Overall, the casualties and losses of natural disasters in the first quarter were less than the average during the same period over the past five years, with the number of people affected and direct economic losses declining by 85 percent and 73 percent, the ministry said.