China's flood crisis worsens with fatal landslide

A health worker fumigates the village of Shannan in the northern province of Shaanxi, one of the worst-hit areas

BEIJING, China -- Ten people were killed and 22 injured when heavy rain triggered a landslide in China's southeastern Fujian province.

The China Daily reports that the landslide on Sunday occurred after several days of continuous rain.

Among the dead were four local villagers and six migrant workers from the south western province of Sichuan.

Continuous heavy rain has caused havoc across much of China over the past two weeks, with flooding in 18 provinces and at least 543 dead.

Elsewhere, the water level of the vast Dongting lake on the Yangtze river in central Hunan province is expected to hit the flood warning mark Monday, after heavy weekend rains pushed the water level dangerously high.

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An incessant deluge has battered large areas of China since early June with the provinces of Shaanxi, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangxi, Chongqing, Sichuan and Guizhou the hardest hit, the China Daily reported.

Over 69 million Chinese have been affected by the floods that have left 700,000 people homeless, destroyed 590,000 homes and demolished some 7.3 million hectares (18 million acres) of farmland, according to official statistics.