Rain, mudslides, flooding and landslides in China have left dozens of people confirmed dead, with officials warning of extreme weather conditions in other parts of the country.
Friday reports say heavy flooding and slides in southern China’s Guangdong Province took the lives of at least 47 people. Nine of the victims were confirmed dead in Meizhou city earlier in the week, with another 38 confirmed dead in a county under the jurisdiction of Meizhou city on Friday.
According to wire news reports, five were killed in Jiaoling county in the northeast of Guangdong Province, and four in Meizhou’s Meixian district Thursday.
It is estimated that over 55,000 people and thousands of homes have been impacted by the torrential rains, which have destroyed some 356 kilometers (about 221.21 mi) of roadway, damaged hundreds of bridges and flooded farmland. Temperatures are reported to have reached higher than 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit).
Rainfall was heaviest Sunday to Tuesday, resulting in a Meixian district roadway collapse and damage to eight Pingyuan county townships.
This week’s deluge has proven historic, with some areas seeing the worst conditions ever recorded. State broadcaster CCTV has said that some areas saw “once-a-century flooding.”
It is predicted that other parts of the country might face similar conditions going into Saturday. The National Meteorological Center issued weather warnings for multiple provinces. Rainfall could be as high as 80mm (3.15 inches) in some areas.
Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.