China Typhoon Rammasun death toll rises to 46

BEIJING - ?The death toll from super typhoon Rammasun had increased to 46 as of 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, with another 25 missing, according to latest figures from the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

The strongest typhoon to hit south China in four decades, Rammasun brought gales, downpours and floods to southern provinces, affecting nearly ten million people in the provinces of Guangdong, Hainan, Yunnan and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said a ministry statement released Monday.

Nineteen deaths were reported in south China's Hainan, nine in southwest China's Guangxi and 18 in neighboring Yunnan, according to the ministry's daily release.

Deaths from a mudslide in a Yunnan village early Monday morning rose to 14, with 11 people still missing, local authorities said early Tuesday.

Over 620,000 people have been resettled and some 252,000 are in urgent need of basic necessities. The rain has destroyed 37,000 houses and 250,000 hectares of crops, the ministry said.

Combined direct economic losses in affected areas amount to 33.6 billion yuan (5.5 billion US dollars).

Despite zero deaths so far, Guangdong suffered the worst economic losses of more than 13 billion yuan.

Direct economic losses in Hainan and Guangxi were estimated at 10.9 billion and 9.4 billion yuan respectively.