Beijing flood death toll climbs to 33

BEIJING: The death toll from recent floods in Beijing rose to 33, including five rescuers, and another 18 people are missing, officials said on Wednesday, as much of the East Asian country's north remains threatened by unusually heavy rainfall.

Days of heavy rain hit areas in the capital's mountainous western outskirts especially hard, causing the collapse of 59,000 homes, damage to almost 150,000 others, and flooding of more than 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of cropland, the Beijing city government said.