Three people in Hotan, in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, were recently killed by mudflows led by around-the-clock downpours and floods, latest official statistics show.

Most of the counties and cities in Hotan, a drought-hit area on the southern brink of the Taklimakan desert, have been hit by the 10-day rainstorms.

Rain-triggered mountain torrents and mudflows have killed over 1,200 heads of livestock and destroyed 260 hectares of farmland, affecting the life of 5,400 residents.

Residents in disaster-hit areas have been evacuated to safe places and the local government is distributing relief materials, including grain and tents, to the affected people.

(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2005)