Homes submerged, tens of thousands relocated in China’s south as flooding intensifies

BBC:

HONG KONG/TOKYO/TAIPEI, Aug 25 (Reuters) – Widespread floods triggered by heavy rain from Typhoon ​Narra intensified on Tuesday across southern China, with homes and shops submerged and thousands of people ‌relocated, while another storm system made its way towards Japan and Taiwan.

Authorities in Chongzuo, in China’s Guangxi region, famous for its giant waterfalls and karst limestone mountains, evacuated more than 15,000 people after water levels surpassed a record high set in 2008.

Rising floodwaters have prompted ​China to relocate a total of 54,000 people in Guangxi, state television said.

Narra made landfall as a tropical storm ​Tuesday evening in China’s southern island province of Hainan after lingering over the Beibu Gulf, ⁠also known as the Gulf of Tonkin, in the northwestern part of the South China Sea for several days, ​dumping heavy rain on Guangxi and the nearby provinces of Hainan and Guangdong.

Heavy rain is expected to persist across ​parts of Vietnam and southern China through Wednesday, with areas of Guangxi, Guangdong, Hainan and Fujian forecast to receive torrential rain, state media said.

In Chongzuo, river water overflowed into the city, with water levels reaching the rooftops of some buildings and power lines.

A notice from ​Chongzuo authorities on Monday ordered all businesses and tourist operations to cease and urged evacuated residents not to return ​to high-risk areas.