And in Jiangxi province, five died from buildings collapsing, two in mudslides and one by a lightning strike, it said. In July last year a single mudslide triggered by days of heavy rain killed at least 14 people in two villages in the southwestern province of Yunnan.
Synonyms of group: crowd, company, party, band, troop | Collins English Thesaurus
Persons is a word and it is listed in many dictionaries as the plural of person along with people. I find that persons is used when the writer is trying to sound politcally correct, or in a sort of social studies context. E.G. persons with disabilities or indigenous persons. In most cases, you should use people.