Photo: screenshot from video online

Tornado in Lianyungang, East China's Jiangsu Province on Wednesday has affected 2,272 people, resulting in one death and 25 injuries, state-owned broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday. The direct economic loss caused by the tornado is estimated to be about 65 million yuan ($9.61 million), local media reported.

Among the 25 injures, one is in critical condition and others have sustained minor injuries. Seven of them have been discharged from the hospital, CCTV reported.

Affected by the ground cyclone, starting from 5:00 am on Wednesday, strong convective weather occurred in most parts of Lianyungang, Jiangsu, and around 12:00 am, tornado disasters occurred in Tangqiao village and Xiaomao village in Guanyun county with a wind force of class 15 to class 17, CCTV reported.

The tornado passed through Guanyun county and Haizhou district of Lianyungang, and struck 11 villages in four townships, according to the report by CCTV.

As of 6:00 pm on Wednesday, according to preliminary statistics, 2,272 people were affected by the tornado with 26 injuries. This tornado affected about 649 households and 3,148 houses were damaged. The agricultural area hit by the cyclone disaster was 3,743 mu (2.49 square kilometers).

Videos shared on social media by residents of Guanyun county showed the area being hit by the tornado, with trees falling on the side of the road, roofs blown off of house, trucks blown over and electric bicycles hanging in trees.

A resident surnamed Tao in Lianyungang who had joined the resettlement work told the Global Times on Thursday that the tornado had mostly stopped by Wednesday afternoon. Tao noted that the disaster situation in the township was better than in the village, some residents in villages had the roof of their house blown off by the tornado, according to Tao.

In response, the local authorities carried out emergency rescue operations and personnel resettlements in a timely manner, making strict effort to prevent the occurrence of secondary disasters and accidents, achieving a good result in the disaster's aftermath.