BEIJING - THREE fishermen died as Tropical Storm Parma slammed into south China, causing torrential rain and high winds, state media said on Tuesday.
Rescuers discovered their bodies after Parma hit Hainan Province on Monday, causing a boat to sink off the coast of Wanning city, according to the Xinhua news agency.
Nine fishermen on the vessel fell overboard, Xinhua said, citing a spokesman for the Hainan Provincial Emergency Response Office, but five were rescued. One fisherman is still missing, the spokesman told Xinhua.
Parma made a landfall in Wanning's Longgun Township at 9.50am on Monday, packing winds of up to 54kmh, according to the Hainan Provincial Observatory, Xinhua reported, and is moving north-west at a speed of 15kmh.
A total of 265 people in the Philippines were confirmed dead in landslides and flooding caused by Parma, civil defence and local officials said. -- AFP
Tue Oct 13, 2009 1:02 pm