Four individuals are killed by deadly floods in southern China, forcing nearly 110,000 people to flee

Heavy rain that pounded southern China over the weekend caused disastrous floods that resulted in the deaths of at least four people and the forced relocation of hundreds of thousands more.

The 127 million-person Guangdong province was the site of the deaths, according to CNN. As a result of severe flooding, over 110,000 people had to be evacuated as of Monday, with over 25,800 of them being housed in shelters.

Ten people were still missing, according to a report by official news agency Xinhua, which said that one of the four fatalities was a rescue worker.

Approximately 1.16 million homes in Guangdong province were without electricity during the course of the weekend, but by Sunday night, approximately 80% of the homes had power again, according to the BBC.

According to the CNN report, since April 16, there has been continuous rain falling in the Pearl River Delta, which is one of the most populous areas of China.

Guangdong has four meteorological stations that have already recorded record rainfall for April.

The Pearl River Delta floods every year from April through September. However, it has recently seen strong storms and significant flooding.

44 rivers in the Pearl River watershed have been running over the alert line for the last week, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

The Bei River, which empties into the Pearl River Delta, was predicted to rise 19 feet beyond the alert level, prompting authorities to issue a “once in a century flood” warning.

“The massive flood at the Bei River is the earliest on record to hit China in the highest category of a four-tier classification system,” a local meteorologist stated, according to CNN.

He continued by saying that floods of size typically happen in late June.

In the meanwhile, pictures and video from above showed settlements almost totally submerged by floods, with the exception of a few spots where only the tops of trees and rooftops could be seen.

In Guangzhou and Shenzhen, planes have been canceled, schools have been closed, and more than 80 residences have either fallen or sustained damage, according to the Xinhua news agency.

According to the news agency, as of Monday, the catastrophic floods had caused a direct economic loss of almost 140 million yuan (USD 20 million).

This week, more heavy rain is predicted for Guangdong, according to the province Meteorological Bureau.

Additionally, until at least Tuesday, China’s meteorological officials have issued a warning for severe rain in the coastal regions of neighboring Fujian.

Beijing, Tianjin, and Heibei are among the other regions of the nation where “moderate to heavy” rain is predicted.

After many typhoons, Beijing, the nation’s capital, and the neighboring provinces were battered by intense rain and flooding in July 2023.

Beijing saw its highest rainfall in 140 years during the month.