Authorities from a town in Nanning, in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, are trying to save locally grown bananas that were battered by Typhoon Rammasun.

As of Tuesday, more than 1.6 million banana trees in the township of Tanluo had been knocked down by the storm, with direct economic losses reaching more than 58 million yuan, according to statistics released by the Tanluo government.

Wei Shiguo, the town leader, said the government has mobilized volunteers and villagers to restore banana trees that were damaged.

Wei said the local government is also contacting banks to offer loans to farmers affected by the typhoon.

"The financial support will allow farmers to restart their plantations and the farmers are now actively throwing themselves into farm work," Wei said.

Bananas are one of the most important agricultural products of the region. Tanluo is known as the country's "Town of Bananas".

China Daily

(China Daily 07/23/2014 page4)