Downpours kill 9 in Sichuan province

SICHUAN, China, July 8 (UPI) -- Torrential rains pounding China's Sichuan province, the epicenter of the devastating May 12 earthquake, have killed nine people, authorities said.

A series of downpours began last Tuesday and continued through the weekend, triggering mudslides in the province's Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture and toppling a house in which six people died, Xinhua, the state-run Chinese news agency, reported Tuesday.

Three waves of storms affected 217,000 people in 11 counties and cities in Sichuan, officials said, adding that more victims could be added to the toll as rescuers tried to extricate six villagers from debris in Xide County.

The latest rain victims joined least 12 people who were killed by downpours in the central Hubei province and six in southwestern Yunnan last weekend, Xinhua said.