50,000 people affected by heavy rain in China

BEIJING: Some 50,000 residents of China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have been affected by floods caused by extensive heavy rain that began on May 8, the regional emergency management department said on Friday.

During the period, rainfall affected a total crop area of over 3,800 hectares, caused 19 households to collapse and severely damaged 34 households, reports Xinhua news agency.

On Thursday alone, downpours lashed the eastern area of Guangxi and some of its coastal areas, while some parts even suffered from thunderstorms and strong winds.

Some areas logged 150 to 250 mm of precipitation with the maximum hourly rainfall reaching 60 to 90 mm.

Starting from 6 p.m. on Thursday, the regional meteorological authorities raised its emergency response level for rainstorms to level IV and warned local residents to watch out for possible landslides and other geological disasters.