The twister careered through Hengyang city in Hunan province Wednesday evening, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake, the Xinhua news agency said.

Downtown areas of Hengyang and two counties of Hengyang and Hengnan were the worst affected with trees felled, advertising billboards collapsing and huge hailstones pounding the area.

The tornado destroyed some 2,430 homes and 1,106 hectares of crops, and the area was left in darkness when power lines were damaged, Xinhua said.

A rescue effort was underway and everyone who lost their homes has been rehoused, the agency said.

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