Climatic disasters in China have caused fewer losses this year than in the past, according to the China Meteorological Administration Thursday.

It is estimated that by September 10 climatic disasters caused 1,225 deaths, damaged a total of 22.016 million hectares of farmland and resulted in 81.68 billion yuan (US$9.87 billion) worth of losses.

China had the least droughts this year since the 1970s. This excludes the western section of northeast region and eastern Inner Mongolia, which had the most serious drought since 1951, said Wang Bangzhong, deputy director of China Meteorological Administration's Department of Prediction and Disaster Management.

China didn't have large floods in drainage areas during flood season this year, and the flooded area is less than the average since the 1990s, said Wang.

However, regional rainstorms in the south caused great damage. Floods unleashed by torrential rains have left at least 143 people dead and more than 50 others missing in southwest China's Sichuan Province and Chongqing Municipality.

Losses caused by typhoons this year are greater than in the previous two years. Zhejiang, a coastal province facing East China Sea, was hit by the strongest typhoon in the past 48 years. The storm claimed 168 lives, left 24 missing and affected life of almost 20 million people.

(Xinhua News Agency October 2, 2004)