Downpour forces 800 to evacuate in central China

ZHENGZHOU, May 21 (Xinhua) -- More than 800 residents have been temporarily relocated as torrential rain hit central China's Henan Province, authorities said Monday.

Downpours have battered Nanyang City since Sunday. As of 8 p.m. Sunday, the rain had affected about 292,000 people, the city government said in a statement.

Nearly 32,700 hectares of crops and rooms of 148 households were damaged, said the statement.

Direct economic losses reached 92 million yuan (14.4 million U.S. dollars).

The numbers may rise as the rain continues, according to the statement.