Natural disasters kill 17 Chinese in October

Natural disasters killed 17 people and caused a direct economic loss of 2.63 billion yuan (405 million U.S. dollars) in October, according to a report by the office of the national disaster reduction committee on Thursday. The disasters affected more than 2.96 million people around China, among which 157,000 residents were evacuated and reallocated. The disasters also wiped 19,200 hectares of farmland produce and destroyed about 7,000 buildings. The report said natural disasters in October, mainly typhoons, floods and snow, were comparatively less serious than those in the same month of recent years.