Shanghai: Thirty-three people were killed and 16 others were missing after super typhoon Lekima made landfall in eastern China's Zhejiang Province, leaving a trail of destruction, local authorities said on Sunday. Lekima, the ninth typhoon and the strongest this year, hit Wenling city on Saturday afternoon, packing winds of 187 kilometers per hour and bringing heavy rainstorms. Most of the deaths occurred in Yongjia County, administered by Wenzhou City, where torrential downpours caused a landslide that blocked a river.

The barrier lake burst and flood waters swept people away. Local media reported 33 people were killed and 16 remained missing. According to the provincial flood control headquarters, nearly 1.08 million people have been evacuated to safe places, and close to 5 million people in Zhejiang were affected, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. In Zhejiang, the typhoon damaged more than 173,000 hectares of crops and 34,000 houses. The direct economic loss amounted to 14.57 billion yuan (about 2.1 billion U.S. dollars), the headquarters said. Rescue operations are underway. On Saturday, heavy downpours flooded the 1,600-year-old town of Linhai, which is about an one-and-half hour drive north from where the typhoon hit.