Typhoon Saomai kills over 100 in China

BEIJING: The strongest typhoon to hit China in 50 years has killed more than 100 people, forced over 1.6 million residents from their homes and destroyed tens of thousands of buildings, authorities said on Friday.

Typhoon Saomai, which struck eastern China on Thursday afternoon, caused the deaths of at least 104 people, with 190 others missing, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters said on its website.

The deaths occurred in the eastern province of Zhejiang and Fujian province directly to the south, it said, without giving more specific details about where the people had died or gone missing.

The state-run Xinhua news agency had given a slightly lower death toll earlier Friday, but with an account of where most of the devastation occurred.