Death toll rises to 52 from floods in central, southwestern China

The death toll from floods that have ravaged mountainous districts in six autonomous regions and provinces in southeastern and central China has risen to at least, 52 according to official accounts, and forced more than a quarter-million people to move to temporary shelters, The Associated Press reported. Seasonal rains cause major flooding around China almost every year. The worst in recent history was in 1998, when 4,150 people died, most of them along the Yangtze River. The massive Three Gorges Dam has largely contained Yangtze flooding, but the problem persists in other parts of the country.