At least 19 people died and 31 are missing after flash floods struck a mountainous part of southern Guizhou province yesterday morning.
Xinhua said a storm that hit Wangmo county in the Qianxinan Buyi and Miao Autonomous Region at 10pm on Monday dumped 196mm of rain and caused flash floods in mountain areas. Some houses in the town of Fuxing and the villages of Youmai and Xiaona were destroyed.
The news agency said senior officials had gone to the area to organise rescue work.
According to the Central Metrological Bureau, southern China will see intensive rain during the next six days, with rainfall in some areas expected to exceed 200mm.
The Guangdong provincial government says at least six people died from flooding in the province due to heavy downpours last week. Rivers including the Xijiang, Beijiang, Dongjiang and Hanjiang were all swollen as a result.
Flood rescue work is continuing in Fujian, where a heavy downpour early last week caused the Minjiang to breach its banks, causing the most serious flooding in the area in 30 years. About 1.78 million people were affected, with economic losses estimated at 3.15 billion yuan.