BEIJING (REUTERS) - A tornado struck northern China, lashing it with rain, killing five people, injuring more than 50 and destroying homes in a major city in Inner Mongolia, state media said on Saturday (Aug 12).

The tornado hit Chifeng, a city about 1,046 km east of Hohhot, the capital of the autonomous region, on Friday afternoon, the People's Daily newspaper and news agency Xinhua said.

State media showed pictures of collapsed houses and buildings flattened by the storm, which destroyed at least 30 houses in three villages and affected 270 people, the People's Daily said.

The injured were being treated in hospital and authorities have launched relief efforts, Xinhua added.

Inner Mongolia is China's top coal producing region.