At least eleven persons are no where to be found while another 60,000 people have been evacuated from their houses in Guangdong by authorities in China after days of torrential rain created major flooding in the country’s most populated province.
China’s meteorological authorities had warned that heavy rains will continue in Guangdong and coastal areas of neighbouring Fujian until at least Tuesday.
According to available reports, several major rivers burst their banks, and authorities are closely monitoring “dangerously high” water levels. They had warned that the level of a river in Northern Guangdong could hit a “once in 100 years” peak on Monday morning, though this had yet to materialise by noon.
Much of Guangdong is part of the low-lying Pearl River delta, which is prone to floods due to watershed floods, sea level rise, and storm surges, according to reports.
The delta is a major manufacturing base in China and one of the country’s most densely-populated regions, with Guangdong alone home to around 127 million people.
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The provincial capital, Guangzhou, as well as the smaller cities of Shaoguan and Heyuan, were among the hardest hit.
Over the weekend, around 1.16 million households in the province lost power, but 80% of them had it restored by Sunday night. Also, due to the constant rain, flights at Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou were cancelled and delayed, while schools in at least three locations were ordered to close.
Dozens of residences in the province have either collapsed or been seriously damaged, with officials estimating a direct economic loss of almost 140.6 million yuan ($19.8 million).
Story was adapted from TVC.
