Authorities have evacuated nearly 60,000 people from their homes in Guangdong, as days of heavy rain caused massive flooding in China’s most populous province.<\/p>\n
Eleven people have gone missing, while no casualties have been reported so far.<\/p>\n
Footage on state media and online show large swathes of land inundated by the floods and rescuers ferrying people on lifeboats in waist-deep water.<\/p>\n
Several major rivers have burst their banks, and authorities are closely monitoring “dangerously high” water levels.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
The delta is a major manufacturing base in China and one of the country\u2019s most densely-populated regions, with Guangdong alone home to around 127 million people.<\/p>\n
Provincial capital Guangzhou as well as smaller cities Shaoguan and Heyuan were among the worst hit.<\/p>\n
Across the province, about 1.16 million households lost power over the weekend, but 80% had their electricity restored by Sunday night.<\/p>\n
Flights have been cancelled and delayed at Baiyun International Airport in the capital city Guangzhou due to continuous rain, while schools have been ordered shut in at least three cities.<\/p>\n
Dozens of homes across the province have either collapsed or have been severely damaged, with authorities estimating a direct economic loss of nearly 140.6m yuan ($19.8m).<\/p>\n