SHANGHAI (AFP) - At least 11 people were killed and over 100 injured after a violent storm battered a town close to Shanghai, Chinese authorities announced on Saturday (May 1).

Nine crew members from a fishing boat that capsized during the gale on Friday evening were still missing after two others were rescued.

Strong winds pounded Nantong, a town of eight million on the north bank of the Yangtze River, accompanied by hailstones the size of large marbles, according to the website Toutiao.com.

Those killed were hit by falling trees and electricity poles, or had been blown into the water by the wind, local authorities said on social media platform Weibo.

They added that 102 people were injured and many homes damaged, with over 3,000 residents evacuated.