2 dead in separate stabbings; 27 hurt

Police officers from Fuzhou, Fujian province, are hunting for a man suspected of having stabbed one person to death and injuring another 19 on Monday night.

The suspect, surnamed Hou, fled by jumping into a river as he was being chased by police, according to a statement released by the Fuzhou public security bureau on Tuesday.

Hou, a native of Yongtai county, Fujian province, arrived at the temporary residence of his ex-wife, surnamed Huang, in the city's Jiangbian village, then stabbed and injured Huang's boyfriend, surnamed Zou, after a quarrel at about 8:30 pm on Monday. Hou and Huang divorced in November.

Hou, 48, immediately fled. He stabbed and injured a person to steal a scooter, then stabbed 18 others along the major Pushang Boulevard before he jumped into a river, police said.

Zou, who was seriously wounded in the attack, died in the hospital at 5:40 am on Tuesday.

Of the 19 people who were wounded, one was in critical condition and hospitalized, while 18 others were in stable condition after receiving treatment.

Fuzhou's public security bureau organized a search for Hou along the river on Tuesday evening. The city government has also set up special task forces to help the victims and deal with the aftermath.

Elsewhere, in Guangdong province, a man suspected of having stabbed a person to death and injuring another eight was detained in Dongguan early on Tuesday morning.

"The incident took place in Dongguan's Humen township, located at the mouth of the Pearl River, at about 7:40 pm on Monday. The man, surnamed Cen, used a kitchen knife to stab residents in the township's Huaide neighborhood," Dongguan police said in a statement on Tuesday.

In addition to one person who died at the scene, two were seriously wounded and six lightly injured. Cen ran away afterward.

Police and medical rescuers immediately arrived to help send the victims to a nearby hospital for treatment, then launched a further investigation.

"Why Cen stabbed local residents is still being investigated," the statement said.

Hu Meidong contributed to this story.