China issues highest-level rainstorm warning after fatal Guangdong floods
Torrential rains have lashed Guangdong province in recent days, swelling rivers and raising fears of severe flooding that state media said could be of the sort only “seen around once a century”.
The megacity of Shenzhen was among the areas experiencing “heavy to very heavy downpours” on Tuesday, the city’s meteorological observatory said, adding the risk of flash floods was “very high”.
It later downgraded its weather warning as the storms weakened, but urged residents to remain vigilant against disasters.
Images from Qingyuan — a city in northern Guangdong that is part of the low-lying Pearl River Delta — showed a building almost completely submerged in a flooded park next to a river.
Official media reported Sunday that more than 45,000 people had been evacuated from Qingyuan, which straddles the Bei River tributary.
State news agency Xinhua said 110,000 residents across Guangdong had been relocated since the downpours started over the weekend.
The floods have claimed the lives of four people, according to state media.
Engulfed lampposts
An AFP team in Qingyuan saw the Bei River running much higher than its usual level on Tuesday evening, with the water almost completely engulfing lampposts on a pedestrianised bank that had been closed to the public.
The rain stopped in the afternoon and the flood water fell slightly, allowing curious onlookers to come and look over the swollen banks.
Li Yan, 52, said he was more concerned about people living down the river than about the continued rainfall forecast for the next few days.
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